Overview

The World Ocean Summit 2019 will take place on March 05th - 07th 2019 in Abu Dhabi.

To follow the event live updates, join us on twitter using hashtag #OceanSummit

Highlights day 1

Highlights day 2

The fifth World Ocean Summit will be held at Riviera Maya, Mexico, on March 7th-9th 2018 and will grapple with some of the ocean's most intractable problems--and explore new possibilities.

Since 2012, The Economist Group has hosted the World Ocean Summit, leveraging our convening power and reputation for quality, objective journalism to bridge the sometimes dissonant perspectives of business, government and civil society in how we use our troubled seas. The vision is an ocean in robust health and with a vital economy; the purpose, to accelerate the transition to the sustainable use of the ocean.

The ocean is in trouble. Across the world, humans have effected dramatic change upon the seas. One thing is certain: our current course is unsustainable. Yet the ocean remains a vital resource with the potential to generate enormous economic growth. Balancing human activity with the long-term health of the ocean is essential.

The last year has been a decisive one for the ocean. In June the United Nations held its first conference on the ocean to discuss the implementation of an ocean-specific sustainable development goal. The COP23 climate change meeting presented an opportunity to usher in swifter and more ambitious action than we have seen so far. Companies, governments and individuals have made commitments to the ocean—many of which were unveiled at the World Ocean Summit 2017.

If 2017 was the year of big promises, 2018 must be about delivery. The World Ocean Summit, the most diverse and important global gathering on the ocean, will bring together political leaders and policymakers, heads of global business, scientists, NGOs and multilaterals for a frank and future-oriented discussion on how to turn these pledges into reality. Which initiatives have borne fruit, and which require reassessment? How can government and industry turn pledges into reality?

Since 2012 the World Ocean Summit has sought to focus the sometimes divergent perspectives of business, government and civil society on how we use our troubled seas. In 2018 the World Ocean Summit will expand into a wider, more ambitious World Ocean Initiative. Its vision will be of an ocean in robust health and with a vital economy; its goal to accelerate the transition to sustainable use of the ocean.

Why attend

World Ocean Summit convenes more than 360+ global leaders from government, industry, multilateral organisations, the scientific community and civil society for a constructive and solution-focused dialogue.

Featured topics

Sustainable seafood

Ocean finance

Marine debris

Blue economy clusters

Ocean governance

Technology and the ocean

Questions we’ll answer

What will SDG14, which pledges to “conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources,” mean for businesses operating in the ocean?

How can government and industry turn pledges on the ocean into reality?

How can sustainable investment in the ocean be scaled to the size of the ‘green’ investment market?

What role can ‘blue economy’ clusters play in driving progress on the ocean?

What new technologies are enabling progress and driving investment in the ocean?

What climate-related risks are businesses operating in the ocean exposed to, and how can they manage these risks?

Which businesses and industries are having the most success in preserving the ocean environment while improving their profitability? How do they do it?

What might a plastic control plan look like?

Speakers

Guðni Th. Jóhannesson

President, Iceland

Guðni Th. Jóhannesson

President, Iceland

Before taking office as president, Gudni Jóhannesson was a professor of history at the University of Iceland. He has also taught at Reykjavik University, Bifröst University and the University of London. For a few years he also worked part-time for the Icelandic State Broadcasting Company as a reporter. Mr Jóhannesson has written numerous books on modern Icelandic history, including works about the Cod Wars, the Icelandic presidency, the late Prime Minister Gunnar Thoroddsen, spying in Iceland, former President Kristján Eldjárn and the 2008 banking collapse. He has also written dozens of scholarly articles and newspaper articles. He has received a variety of accolades for his work.

Mr Jóhannesson studied history and political science at Warwick University in England and finished his BA degree in 1991. He studied German at Bonn University in 1991–92 and Russian at the University of Iceland in 1993–94. He graduated with a master’s degree in history from the University of Iceland in 1997. He studied at Oxford University in England and graduated with an MSt degree in history in 1999, and completed his PhD in history at Queen Mary University of London in 2003.

Enrique Peña Nieto

President, Mexico

Enrique Peña Nieto

President, Mexico

Enrique Peña Nieto served as a representative in the Congress of the state of Mexico, and later as governor of the state from 2005 to 2011. After concluding his term he was elected president of Mexico for the term 2012-2018. From the beginning of his administration he has proposed a series of reforms to break down legal and institutional barriers that were hindering Mexico’s development.

Mr Nieto holds a law degree from the Universidad Panamericana and an MBA from the Instituto Tecnológico de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey.

Erna Solberg

Prime minister, Norway

Erna Solberg

Prime minister, Norway

Erna Solberg was born in Bergen 24 February 1961. She holds a Cand. Mag. Degree (in Sociology, Political Science, Statistics and Economy) from the University of Bergen. Ms Solberg has represented the Conservative Party in the County of Hordaland at the Norwegian Parliament since 1989, and has been leader of the Conservative Party since 2004. Ms Solberg was minister of local government and regional development from 2001-2005 in Kjell Magne Bondevik's second government. Ms Solberg has held the position as prime minister since 2013. She began her second term as prime minister after the election in 2017.

José María Figueres

Founder, Ocean Unite; former president, Costa Rica

José María Figueres

Founder, Ocean Unite; former president, Costa Rica

Catherine McKenna

Minister of environment and climate change, Canada

Catherine McKenna

Minister of environment and climate change, Canada

José Calzada Rovirosa

Secretary of agriculture, Mexico

José Calzada Rovirosa

Secretary of agriculture, Mexico

In August 2015, President Enrique Peña Nieto appointed Jose Calzada as secretary of agriculture, livestock, rural development, fisheries and food. As secretary of agriculture, Mr. Calzada oversees Mexico’s agrifood sector policies and programs, with a focus on strengthening productivity and output growth.

In 2006, Mr. Calzada won a seat in Mexico’s Senate Chamber, serving there until 2009, when he won the governorship election of this home state of Queretaro. Governor Calzada won recognition as the best evaluated among his peers for three consecutive years. He also won recognition by implementing the social program ‘Soluciones’, which registered the country’s best performance among states in reducing poverty rates and alleviating malnutrition, especially among young children.

Mr. Calzada earned a Bachelor’s degree and a Master’s diploma in Business Administration. He also obtained a diploma in Metropolitan Government and Regional Administration. Currently, he is PhD candidate for a doctoral degree in Economic Sciences from the Autonomous University of Queretaro.

Rafael Pacchiano

Minister of the environment, Mexico

Rafael Pacchiano

Minister of the environment, Mexico

Ana Paula Vitorino

Minister of sea, Portugal

Ana Paula Vitorino

Minister of sea, Portugal

Ana Paula Vitorino serves as minister of sea for the government of Portugal. She has been a member of the Portuguese National Assembly since 2009. Between 2005 and 2009, she was secretary of state for transport.

Ms Vitorino has published several articles in scientific and technical journals on matters regarding transport, infrastructure, logistics and the maritime economy. Between 1989 and 1990 she was invited to teach as assistant professor at Instituto Superior Técnico on a wide range of disciplines, including urban planning, transport, architecture and Earth resources.

She was a partner in TransNetWork Consultancy, which provides services in Portugal, Africa and Latin America. Between 2010 and 2012, she was a non-executive board member of the Hydroelectric of Cahora Bassa.
Ms Vitorino has a degree in civil engineering, with a specialisation in urban development and transport (1986), and a master in transport (1992) from the Instituto Superior Técnico.

Eneida de León

Minister of housing, territorial planning and environment, Uruguay

Eneida de León

Minister of housing, territorial planning and environment, Uruguay

Eneida de León has served as the minister of housing, territorial planning and environment of Uruguay since 2015. Ms de León previously held the executive council presidency of the entertainment complex of the official broadcasting service (SODRE). She also co-ordinated several projects at the National Corporation for Development and held the position of national director of architecture at the Ministry of Transport and Public Works. Ms de León chaired the Society of Architects of Uruguay between 2012 and 2014, and she worked as a professor in the faculty of architecture at the University of the Republic for many years. Before holding public office, she worked in the private sector. Ms de León graduated from the University of the Republic.

Rifky Effendi Hardijanto

Rifky Effendi Hardijanto

Mario Aguilar

National commissioner of aquaculture and fisheries, Mexico

Mario Aguilar

National commissioner of aquaculture and fisheries, Mexico

Mario Aguilar is the national commissioner for aquaculture and fisheries at the ministry of agriculture, livestock rural development fisheries and food of Mexico. He designs and implements the national policy for sustainable management of fisheries and aquatic resources, as well as the development and promotion of fisheries and aquaculture activities.

Mr Aguilar is responsible for monitoring the relevant policy and international affairs of which Mexico is a part. He has also served as fishing affairs minister at the Mexican embassy in Washington, DC; minister counselor for environment, social development and fisheries; and alternate representative for legal affairs in Mexico's mission at the Organization of the American States in Washington, DC. He has also represented Mexico in international forums.

Nelson Zambrano

Undersecretary of coastal marine affairs, Ecuador

Nelson Zambrano

Undersecretary of coastal marine affairs, Ecuador

Helen Ågren

Ambassador for the ocean, ministry of foreign affairs, Sweden

Helen Ågren

Ambassador for the ocean, ministry of foreign affairs, Sweden

Helen Ågren is Sweden’s ambassador for the ocean. She has served in five Swedish governments in the ministry for energy and the environment, and the ministry for sustainable development. Ms Ågren has also served in the prime minister’s office, where she worked for national and international sustainable development.

Ms Ågren's work focuses on strategic policy development and stakeholder co-operation, as well as research and innovation in the fields of consumption and production, green economy, climate mitigation and adaptation, and transport and international ocean affairs.

Chumnarn Pongsri

Deputy director-general of fisheries, Thailand

Chumnarn Pongsri

Deputy director-general of fisheries, Thailand

Chumnarn Pongsri is the deputy director-general of the department of fisheries, ministry of agriculture and cooperatives, Thailand. He concurrently holds a key position as the head of a Thai delegation to develop and strengthen fisheries’ cooperation against illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing regionally and globally.

Prior to this assignment, from 2009 to 2015 Mr Pongsri was the secretary-general of the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center (SEAFDEC), a regional body which facilitates the transfer of new technologies and research for rational and sustainable use of resources, enhances the capability of fisheries to address emerging international issues, and helps Southeast Asia gain greater access to international trade.

Mr Pongsri has also served as the director of the environment division of the Mekong River Commission (MRC) Secretariat and a member of the board of advisors for the Greater Mekong Sub-region Academic Research Network (GMSARN). Throughout his professional life, Mr Pongsri has devoted himself to poverty alleviation in small-scale communities through sustainable development, and promoting food security and safety along the supply chain.

Mr Pongsri received a PhD from the University of Wales, Swansea, in 1994. He holds a master’s degree in aquaculture from the Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand and a bachelor’s degree in fisheries from Kasetsart University, Thailand.

Terry Beech

Parliamentary secretary to the minister of fisheries, oceans and the coast guard, Canada

Terry Beech

Parliamentary secretary to the minister of fisheries, oceans and the coast guard, Canada

Suseno Sukoyono

Suseno Sukoyono

Suseno Sukoyono is the minister’s advisor in Indonesia’s ministry of marine affairs and fisheries. From 2010 to 2013 Mr Sukoyono served as executive chair of the Coral Triangle Initiative for Coral Reefs, Fisheries, and Food Security (CTI-CFF), a multilateral partnership of six countries in Southeast Asia and the Pacific region which addresses the urgent threats to the coastal and marine resources in the Coral Triangle. He was also designated Indonesia’s special envoy for marine environment affairs at the second session of the United Nations Environment Assembly. Under his leadership, the Indonesia-sponsored Resolution on coral reef management (EA/2/12), which called on UN member states to manage their coral reefs in a sustainable manner, was adopted on 27 May 2016.

Ricardo Lagos Weber

Senator, Chile

Ricardo Lagos Weber

Senator, Chile

Carlos Manuel Joaquín González

Governor, Quintana Roo

Carlos Manuel Joaquín González

Governor, Quintana Roo

Beverly Wade

Beverly Wade

Beverly Wade is the administrator of the fisheries department of Belize. She is directly responsible for the full range of domestic and international fisheries management, enforcement, and sustainability issues. She is the adviser to the minister and chief executive officer of the ministry of agriculture and fisheries.

Ms Wade has been involved in fisheries management for 24 years. As a fisheries administrator for the past 17 years, she has been directly involved in the implementation of measures to facilitate the sustainable development of Belize’s marine resources. She has also represented Belize at various international fora which impact and regulate the national development of fisheries. As the national coordinator and focal point for regional programs and projects, Ms Wade spearheads the endorsement and implementation of regional policies and legislation directed at the wise use, sound management, and conservation of Belize’s fisheries resources.

Ms Wade has been a member of the executive committee of the Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism, and the Central American Fisheries and Aquaculture Organization for 7 years.

Renault Castro

Chief executive officer, Abralatas

Renault Castro

Chief executive officer, Abralatas

Renault Castro is a graduate in economics and holds a MSc degree from the University of Oxford. He was a Brazilian government official for 23 years until 1998. His last post in the government was a two-year term as commissioner of the Brazilian antitrust agency. After eight years as an antitrust private consultant, he assumed the role of chief executive officer of Abralatas in 2006

Alexis Haass

Director of sustainability, adidas

Alexis Haass

Director of sustainability, adidas

Alexis Haass heads adidas brand’s sustainability program from its global headquarters in Herzogenaurach, Germany. Her responsibilities include directing adidas' sustainability strategy, developing new sustainable innovations and business models, and coordinating sustainable product creation across adidas’ business units and global creation centers. Ms Haass’ previous work revolved around sustainable product development and clean technology with companies such as IDEO, P&G, and Transfair USA. Ms Haass has an MBA in marketing, and a MS in sustainable systems from the University of Michigan.

David Clark

Vice-president, sustainability, Amcor

David Clark

Vice-president, sustainability, Amcor

David Clark leads Amcor’s sustainability programmes and is closely involved with integrating sustainable design and social responsibility into Amcor’s product development and innovation processes. This includes leading Amcor to achieve a recently announced pledge that by 2025 all of its products will be designed to be recyclable or reused and that the company will increase the use of recycled content and participate in increasing the collection, processing and use of recycled containers.

Mr Clark is also chairman of the Plastic Recycling Corporation of California, serves on the external advisory board of the Erb Institute for Global Sustainable Enterprise at the University of Michigan, and is an Aspen Institute First Movers Fellow.

He holds a BS in physics from the University of Michigan and an MBA from Pepperdine University.

John Hayes

Chief executive officer, Ball Corporation

John Hayes

Chief executive officer, Ball Corporation

John Hayes is president and chief executive officer of Ball Corporation. He was elected to his current position in January 2011, after becoming president and chief operating officer in 2010.

Mr Hayes joined Ball Corporation in 1999 as senior director of corporate planning and development, and was named vice-president of corporate planning and development in 2000 and vice-president of corporate strategy, marketing and development in 2003. From 2005 to 2008, he served in leadership roles for Ball Packaging Europe, first as executive vice-president and then as president. In 2008, he returned to the United States as executive vice-president and chief operating officer. He was named vice-president, Ball Corporation, in 2005 and senior vice-president in 2007.

Prior to his work with Ball, Mr Hayes was vice-president of mergers and acquisitions/corporate finance for Lehman Brothers in Chicago. He also served as research associate / senior research associate for Greenwich Associates in Stamford, Connecticut.

Mr Hayes serves on the board of directors for Ball Corporation and Leeds School of Business, University of Colorado, Boulder. From 2008 to 2010, he was chairman of Can Manufacturers Institute, Washington, DC. From 2006 to 2007, he was chairman of Beverage Can Makers Europe, Brussels.

Mr Hayes received a bachelor’s degree in English and economics from Colgate University in 1988. He was awarded an MBA in finance and strategy in 1993 from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University, where he was named the Ira J Harris scholar in finance.

Fernando Musa

Chief executive officer, Braskem

Fernando Musa

Chief executive officer, Braskem

Fernando Musa was appointed as president of Braskem in May 2016. He joined Braskem in 2010 as the vice-president of strategic planning. In March 2012, he became the president of Braskem America, the unit responsible for Braskem's business both in the US and in Europe.

Mr Musa has a BSc in mechanical engineering from Instituto Tecnológico da Aeronáutica (ITA, Aeronautics Technological Institute) and has an MBA degree from Insead, France. He has worked in several companies such as McKinsey, Editora Abril, and Monitor Group.

Dagmar Nelissen

Senior researcher and consultant, CE Delft

Dagmar Nelissen

Senior researcher and consultant, CE Delft

Dagmar Nelissen, an economist, works as a senior researcher and consultant for CE Delft, an independent environmental research and consultancy organisation located in the Netherlands. For more than ten years, Ms Nelissen has been working in the field of climate protection in the maritime shipping sector, specialising in technical and operation (political) measures to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions. In this area, she has been involved in a large number of projects commissioned by a variety of clients, including the International Maritime Organisation, the European Commission, national ministries and environmental non-governmental organisations.

Geir Molvik

Chief executive officer, Cermaq

Geir Molvik

Chief executive officer, Cermaq

Geir Molvik became CEO of Cermaq in July 2016. Mr Molvik joined the Cermaq Group as managing director for EWOS Norway in 2006; he was appointed chief operating officer of farming in 2010 and chief operating officer Norway in 2013. He has broad experience in aquaculture from Hydrotech-Gruppen, Hydro Seafood and Noraqua in Norway, Georgia Sea Farms in Canada, and Tassal in Tasmania, Australia. Mr Molvik was senior vice-president at Christiania Bank og Kreditkasse for several years. He holds an MSc from the University of Tromsø, Norway.

Michael Eckhart

Managing director and head of environmental finance, power, Citigroup

Michael Eckhart

Managing director and head of environmental finance, power, Citigroup

Michael Eckhart is a managing director and global head of environmental finance in the corporate and investment banking division of Citigroup in New York City. Previously, he was founding president of the American Council On Renewable Energy (ACORE), a non-profit organisation based in Washington, DC, where he emerged as a national and global leader in the renewable-energy field. Earlier, he developed financing for solar energy under the SolarBank Initiative in Europe, South Africa and India; was chairman and CEO of United Power Systems; served as vice-president of Arête Ventures; was a strategic planner of General Electric Company’s power systems sector; and was a principal with the energy practice of Booz Allen Hamilton.

Mr Eckhart has received numerous awards and recognitions, including Renewable Energy Man of the Year of India in 1998, the Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship in 2008, the Good Deal for All Award in 2009, the ISES Hermann Scheer Global Leadership Award in 2013 and Biofuels Financier of the Year in 2014. He received a degree in electrical engineering from Purdue University and an MBA from Harvard Business School, and served in the US Navy Submarine Service.

Rob Kaplan

Managing director, Closed Loop Partners

Rob Kaplan

Managing director, Closed Loop Partners

Ben Jordan

Senior director, environmental policy, The Coca-Cola Company

Ben Jordan

Senior director, environmental policy, The Coca-Cola Company

Ben Jordan works as senior director of environmental policy for the Coca-Cola Company. In over 20 years at Coca-Cola, Mr Jordan has worked in both its North American and its global organisations, travelling in over 35 countries. He has held roles focused on both internal operational issues and relationship-building with key stakeholders. In his current role, he has responsibilities for driving sustainability programmes in climate, packaging and agriculture.

Mr Jordan has participated actively in Coca-Cola’s involvement with a number of leading environmental organisations, including the Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Economies (CERES), World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and The Nature Conservancy. Currently, he sits on the member’s council of Bonsucro (the Better Sugarcane Initiative), the board of trustees of The Nature Conservancy in Georgia and the advisory board of Chattahoochee Riverkeeper. He is a participant in the World Economic Forum’s Food Security and Agriculture Partners group and the Consumer Goods Forum Pulp and Paper Working Group.

Mr Jordan has bachelor's and master's degrees from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and serves as an educational counsellor for MIT, interviewing prospective undergraduate students from the Atlanta area. He has a PhD in public policy (environmental policy specialty) from Georgia Tech, where he participates on an arts advisory board. He is an adjunct instructor at Emory University and a reviewer for the Journal of Industrial Ecology. He served as a founding member of the City of Decatur Environmental Sustainability Board, helping drive efforts in one of metro Atlanta’s most progressive municipalities.

Richard Northcote

Chief sustainability officer, Covestro

Richard Northcote

Chief sustainability officer, Covestro

Richard Northcote is Chief Sustainability Officer at Covestro, a global leader in high performance polymers. He is a passionate advocate of the triple-bottom line and the UNGC Sustainable Development Goals as strategic tools for business and economic growth. Prior to taking this role, Richard has worked in civil engineering, journalism and the chemical sector in a number of European countries, the Middle East and Asia.

Richard sits on the Steering Committee of the Oxford University Business Economics Programme and on the Advisory Boards of Tongji University Sustainability Development Council and Leeds University Business School's Research and Innovation Programme.

David Lear

Vice-president, sustainability, Dell

David Lear

Vice-president, sustainability, Dell

David Lear serves as the vice-president of Dell’s sustainability programs, and works to create long-term stakeholder value and opportunities by integrating economic, social, and environmental responsibility into Dell’s core business strategies. His team engages key stakeholders including customers, NGOs, regulators, industry groups, and agencies to collaborate on global policy and standards development. This includes managing strategic giving and community partnerships that demonstrate the enabling power of technology to drive both business and sustainability outcomes.

Mr Lear joined Dell in 2006 as director of product safety and environmental affairs, responsible for the delivery of Dell global product compliance programs. Previously, Mr Lear served in various roles in design and manufacturing in the test and measurement industry, where he specialised in the development of product technologies.

Mr Lear holds a BS in Chemistry and Biology from Missouri State University, and a MBA from the University of Indianapolis.

David Golden

Chief legal and sustainability officer; corporate secretary, Eastman

David Golden

Chief legal and sustainability officer; corporate secretary, Eastman

David A. Golden is senior vice-president, chief legal and sustainability officer, and corporate secretary for Eastman. He is responsible for Eastman’s legal, sustainability, corporate HSES, global public affairs, and policy departments, as well as Eastman’s ethics and compliance programme.

As president of the Eastman Foundation, Mr Golden believes small actions can have large effects, and that collaboration leads to catalytic and transformation innovation. He serves on several boards and advisory councils aligned with Eastman’s corporate partnership initiatives, focusing in the areas of education, empowerment, economic development, and the environment.

Mr Golden is passionate about the importance of understanding the ocean and how it impacts our changing world. Under his leadership, Eastman is committed to better understanding the blue economy, and what it means for our business and for our global environment.

Jonathan Taylor

Vice-president, European Investment Bank

Jonathan Taylor

Vice-president, European Investment Bank

Jonathan Taylor has been a vice-president of the European Investment Bank since January 2013. He is a member of the EIB’s management committee which draws up the Bank’s financial and lending policies, oversees its day-to-day business, and takes collective responsibility for the Bank’s performance.

Mr Taylor has particular responsibility for the Bank’s activities in Greece, Cyprus, the United Kingdom and China, Mongolia, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam. He also leads on the Bank’s work in climate action, circular economy and in other environmental lending policies. Internally, he is responsible for a range of control functions, such as audit, compliance and related matters.

Mr Taylor was previously director-general of financial services and stability at HM Treasury (the UK Finance Ministry). He has held a range of posts in both the private and public sectors. He is a graduate of the University of Oxford, in philosophy, politics and economics.

Naoko Ishii

Chief executive officer and chairperson, Global Environment Facility

Naoko Ishii

Chief executive officer and chairperson, Global Environment Facility

Naoko Ishii is an economist by training. Since taking the helm at the Global Environment Facility in 2012, Ms Ishii has steered the development and implementation of a new long-term strategy that addresses the underlying drivers of environmental degradation. She has put protecting the global commons at its center.

Ms Ishii was previously the deputy vice-minister of finance in Japan, and has also worked at the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. She has published numerous papers and several books, two of which were awarded the Suntory Prize (1990) and Okita Memorial Prize for International Development Research (2004). She is the inaugural recipient of the 2006 Enjoji Jiro Memorial Prize. Ms Ishii holds a BA and a PhD from the University of Tokyo.

Gabe Wing

Director of safety and sustainability, Herman Miller

Gabe Wing

Director of safety and sustainability, Herman Miller

Julie T Katzman

Julie T Katzman

Julie T Katzman is the executive vice-president and chief operating officer of the Inter-American Development Bank. Mrs Katzman joined the IDB in 2009 after a successful career as an investment banker, bringing together private-sector expertise with a lifelong interest in development.

Mrs Katzman manages the IDB’s overall operations, with 4,000 people in 28 offices. During her tenure, she has been responsible for increasing the organisation’s focus on results, increasing diversity and inclusion, and spurring the growth of new and innovative solutions. Leveraging her experience in investment banking, she has also played a significant role in crafting the IDB’s next generation of capital and risk policies and creating innovative structures to improve the IDB’s capital ratios. Mrs Katzman is a frequent speaker on many topics, including transparency, sustainable infrastructure, and gender and diversity.

Her work has been recognised through a number of awards, including Latin Trade magazine’s Top 25 Businesswomen in Latin America and Diversity Global magazine’s Top 10 Influential Women in Global Diversity. Mrs Katzman serves on the board of directors of the MacArthur Foundation, the International Center for Research on Women and the Global Banking Alliance for Women. She is on the board of advisers of the MIT Media Lab and the Instituto de Empresa in Madrid, and she is a member of the International Council on Women’s Business Leadership.

Camilla Seth

Executive director of sustainable finance, JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Camilla Seth

Executive director of sustainable finance, JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Camilla Seth is executive director at JPMorgan Chase Sustainable Finance. She focuses on conservation and climate finance, and sustainable and impact investing. She leads efforts to develop sustainability guidance across the business, engage with clients on sustainability-related risks and opportunities, and maintain dialogue with a wide range of stakeholders. Ms Seth also leads the firm’s partnership with NatureVest, the conservation finance initiative at The Nature Conservancy.

Before coming to JPMorgan Chase, Ms Seth served as a founding director at the Global Impact Investing Network. Prior to that, she advised leading commercial and investment banks on sustainability strategy formulation, environmental and social risk management, and the identification of environmentally-beneficial investment opportunities. As vice-president of environmental affairs at Citigroup, she managed environmental initiatives across the investment bank and directed the firm’s global environmental philanthropy. Ms Seth has also been the program officer for the environment at the Surdna Foundation, where she managed the foundation’s strategy and grantmaking on energy, climate, and forestry initiatives. Ms Seth began her career at EA Capital, a financial advisory firm which specialises in resource efficiency and productivity in the energy, water, agriculture, transportation, and forest product industries.

Gary Gysin

Chief executive officer, Liquid Robotics, A Boeing Company

Gary Gysin

Chief executive officer, Liquid Robotics, A Boeing Company

As president and chief executive officer of Liquid Robotics, A Boeing Company, Gary Gysin leads the company whose pioneering technology is fundamentally changing the way the world accesses, collects and monitors ocean data through the innovative use of ocean robots. Under his leadership, he guided the company through a successful acquisition by Boeing.

Over his 30-year career, Mr Gysin has been recognised as an innovative and high-energy executive with a reputation for transforming start-ups into global businesses. Prior to Liquid Robotics, he held leadership positions at high-technology companies such as Silver Spring Networks, McData Corporation, Asempra, PGSoft, Novell/Volera and Crosswise Communications. While leading Asempra and PGSoft as the chief executive officer, Mr Gysin led the successful growth and subsequent sales of both Silicon Valley start-up companies.

Mr Gysin serves on a variety of industry councils for oceans and national security. He earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of California, Santa Cruz.

Francisco Saraiva Gomes

Chief executive officer, Pontos Aqua Holdings

Francisco Saraiva Gomes

Chief executive officer, Pontos Aqua Holdings

Francisco Saraiva Gomes founded and leads Pontos Aqua, a unique ecosystem of financing and de-risking for the global aquaculture industry. Pontos is formed by Pontos Aqua Holdings, an investment company that provides equity and specialty finance capital for established companies across the global aquaculture industry, and Pontos Aqua, a strategic and operational de-risking firm that seeks higher-risk opportunities. Mr Gomes has managed businesses and operations across the globe, spanning health and nutrition, engineering, industrial farming, processing and distribution, and policymaking. He was on the board of the World Aquaculture Society and was an adviser for the EU Economic and Social Committee. Mr Gomes is an alumnus of Auburn University and Harvard Business School.

Manuel Bueno

Fund director, Meloy Fund

Manuel Bueno

Fund director, Meloy Fund

As senior director for sustainable markets and finance, Manuel Bueno helps manage and develop Rare’s global and regional market interventions and innovative financial mechanisms to infuse capital into the company’s sustainable-markets work. He is also a founding fund partner and investment committee member at the Meloy Fund, a coastal fisheries impact-investing fund in Indonesia and the Philippines. Mr Bueno has a strong background in impact-investing transactions across a wide range of sectors such as agribusiness, manufacturing and financial institutions in Latin America, Asia and Africa.

Rolando Morillo

Vice-president, sustainability and impact group, Rockefeller & Co

Rolando Morillo

Vice-president, sustainability and impact group, Rockefeller & Co

Frederic Michel

Group director, Sky Ocean Ventures, Sky plc

Frederic Michel

Group director, Sky Ocean Ventures, Sky plc

Mark Geilenkirchen

Chief executive officer, SOHAR Port and Freezone

Mark Geilenkirchen

Chief executive officer, SOHAR Port and Freezone

After receiving his bachelor’s degree in logistics from the Maritime Institute De Ruyters in the Netherlands, Mark Geilenkirchen set up and managed HT Research from 1991 to 2001, an international consultancy focusing on logistics and quality. In 2002, he returned to De Ruyters as a lecturer, where he created a specialised business faculty for logistics and established many working relationships with other leading universities. In 2006, Mr Geilenkirchen joined ABN AMRO as vice-president, where he helped lead the company through the global financial crisis. From 2010 to 2014 Mr Geilenkirchen was appointed chief executive officer and chief compliance officer of APM Terminals at Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, where he was responsible for attracting significant Chinese investments and returning the loss-making port to profit. Mr Geilenkirchen joined SOHAR Port and Freezone as chief executive officer in July 2016.

Martyn Parker

Chairman, global partnership, Swiss Re

Martyn Parker

Chairman, global partnership, Swiss Re

Martyn Parker, chairman of global partnerships, is a member of the group management board. He leads Swiss Re’s business activities with governments and development and non-governmental organisations worldwide.

Previously he was regional president, Asia, and a member of Swiss Re's executive committee. From his Hong Kong base, he oversaw Swiss Re's rapidly expanding Asia-Pacific business. Earlier responsibilities included being chief executive officer of Swiss Re Life and Health UK; Life and Health executive board member responsible for Africa, the Middle East, Israel and the Indian subcontinent, based in South Africa; and working in Singapore as the life representative for South-east Asia.

Darian McBain

Global director of sustainable development, Thai Union

Darian McBain

Global director of sustainable development, Thai Union

Darian McBain is the global director of sustainable development for Thai Union, one of the world’s largest seafood processors. She is an engineer, scientist and science communicator with a focus on sustainable supply chains. Ms McBain has spent her career working with business, government and non-governmental organisations on managing the environmental and social impacts and risks of business activities and contributing to a more sustainable society. She is a member of the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) Stakeholder Advisory Council, a board member of the Global Seafood Sustainability Initiative, a founding member of the Seafood Business for Ocean Stewardship (SEABos) initiative and the business representative for Thailand on the Bali Process Government and Business Forum on human trafficking. Ms McBain earned her PhD from the University of Sydney. She holds an MSc in business strategy, politics and environment from the University of London, and a BEng (environmental) from the University of New South Wales.

Richard Branson

Founder, Virgin Group

Richard Branson

Founder, Virgin Group

Conceived in 1970 by Sir Richard Branson, the Virgin Group has gone on to grow successful businesses in sectors including mobile telephony, travel and transportation, financial services, leisure and entertainment, and health and wellness. Since starting the youth culture magazine Student at age 16, Sir Richard has found entrepreneurial ways to drive positive change in the world. In 2004 he established Virgin Unite, the non-profit foundation of the Virgin Group, which unites people and entrepreneurial ideas to create opportunities for a better world. Most of his time is now spent building businesses that will make a positive difference in the world and working with Virgin Unite and organisations it has incubated, such as The Elders, The Carbon War Room, The B Team and Ocean Unite. He also serves on the Global Commission on Drug Policy and supports ocean conservation with the Ocean Elders.

John Haley

Chief executive officer, Willis Towers Watson

John Haley

Chief executive officer, Willis Towers Watson

John Haley is the CEO of Willis Towers Watson. He joined the company in 1977. Throughout his career he has served in a variety of roles, including consulting actuary to several of the company’s largest clients, manager of the Washington, DC, consulting office and leader of the global retirement practice. Mr Haley was named CEO in 1998. Under his leadership, the company has completed three historic mergers, in 2005, 2010 and 2016, which formed present-day Willis Towers Watson.

Mr Haley also serves on the board of directors of the US-China Business Council and MAXIMUS, and he formerly served as a director of Hudson Global. He is a fellow of both the Society of Actuaries and the Conference of Consulting Actuaries, and has served as a trustee of The Actuarial Foundation.

He has a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Rutgers College and received a fellowship for two years of study at the Graduate School of Mathematics at Yale University.

Rowan Douglas

Head of capital, science and policy practice, Willis Towers Watson

Rowan Douglas

Head of capital, science and policy practice, Willis Towers Watson

Rowan Douglas is head of capital, science and policy practice at Willis Towers Watson and the chair of the Willis Research Network. Previously, he served on the board of Willis Re, the Willis Group’s reinsurance division, as the chief executive officer of global analytics.

From 2014 to 2016 Mr Douglas led the creation of the Insurance Development Forum (IDF) of industry, governments, and international institutions. The forum aims to harness the role of re/insurance capabilities to meet the Sustainable Development Goals and wider post-2015 agenda. In May 2016 he was appointed to lead the Implementation Group of the IDF. He was made CBE in the 2016 New Year's Honours List for services to the economy through risk, insurance, and sustainable growth.

Mr Douglas was a member of the UK prime minister’s Council for Science and Technology from 2011 to 2016, and the Royal Society's working group on resilience to climate risk and extreme weather. He also serves on the executive committee of the International Insurance Society, and received the Kenneth R Black Award in 2014.

Following a BA in Geography from Durham University and an MPhil in Geography from Bristol University, Mr Douglas began his career underwriting reinsurance at Lloyd’s Syndicate 1095 before founding the international risk information company, WIRE Limited, in 1994, which was purchased by the Willis Group in 2000.

Paul Jardine

Executive vice-president and chief experience officer, XL Catlin

Paul Jardine

Executive vice-president and chief experience officer, XL Catlin

As executive vice-president and chief experience officer, Paul Jardine has responsibility for XL Group’s communications and marketing function, claims, and distribution strategy. Mr Jardine joined Catlin in 2001 with responsibility for the development of new financial products. He was appointed chief executive of the Catlin Syndicate in 2003 and chief operating officer of Catlin in 2004.

Mr Jardine was a partner at Coopers & Lybrand, where he was involved almost exclusively with issues dealing with Lloyd’s and the London insurance market. He began his career with Prudential Assurance Company as an actuarial student and subsequently as an actuary. He is a fellow of the Institute of Actuaries. Mr Jardine was chairman of the Lloyd’s Market Association from 2007 to 2010 and was a member of the Council of Lloyd’s and deputy chairman of Lloyd’s from 2008 to 2017.

Beth A Christensen

Director, Environmental Studies Program, Adelphi University

Beth A Christensen

Director, Environmental Studies Program, Adelphi University

Beth Christensen is a marine geologist and director of the Environmental Studies Program at Adelphi University, where she is a tenured professor. She studies marine sediments to understand past ocean and climate systems. Professor Christensen has sailed on multiple US research vessels in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans, explored underwater canyons in DSV-2 Alvin, and spent over a year of her life at sea. Her research has been supported by the National Science Foundation and the Office of Naval Research, among others, and she regularly publishes with US and international collaborators. Professor Christensen served as chair of the US Advisory Committee for Scientific Ocean Drilling and sits on the programme’s curatorial advisory board. She holds degrees from Rutgers University and the University of South Carolina.

Susanne Lockhart

Research associate, California Academy of Sciences

Susanne Lockhart

Research associate, California Academy of Sciences

Susanne Lockhart obtained her doctorate from the University of California, Santa Cruz and has more than 25 years of experience as an Antarctic biologist. She is a benthic invertebrate specialist, who has worked for the United States’ National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, contributed to the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization, and been involved in the Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources.

Most recently, Ms Lockhart partnered with Greenpeace to explore the seafloor in a submarine within the boundaries of Antarctic MPA proposals currently on the international negotiating table. Her research has been used by a host of international agencies to provide data for decisions about the designation of Vulnerable Marine Ecosystems.

John Tobin-de la Puente

Professor of practice of corporate sustainability, Atkinson Center for a Sustainable Future, Cornell University

John Tobin-de la Puente

Professor of practice of corporate sustainability, Atkinson Center for a Sustainable Future, Cornell University

Professor Tobin is an environmental biologist and attorney by training. He has over two decades of private sector experience, having practiced corporate law and worked in the international finance industry for most of his career. His recent professional experience has been focused on corporate sustainability, including the management of environmental, social, and reputational risks; stakeholder engagement and communications; business ethics; sustainability strategy; and the development of financial products and services that aim to address broad societal challenges. In addition, Professor Tobin has substantial leadership and governance experience in not-for-profit entities at the board level, particularly in the areas of environment, science, and education. Professor Tobin has a PhD in tropical ecology from Harvard University’s Museum of Comparative Zoology, as well as a JD from Harvard Law School. Prior to joining Cornell University, he was managing director and global head of sustainability at Credit Suisse.

Daria Siciliano

Researcher, University of California Santa Cruz; lead scientist, Ocean Foundation

Daria Siciliano

Researcher, University of California Santa Cruz; lead scientist, Ocean Foundation

Daria Siciliano is a coral reef ecologist at the Institute of Marine Sciences of the University of California, Santa Cruz. For the past five years Ms Siciliano has focused on Cuba’s coral reefs with the Cuba Marine Research and Conservation Programme of The Ocean Foundation, planning and overseeing multi-institutional expeditions to Cuba’s southern and north-western coral reef chains. She has been focusing on the effects of climate change, nutrient run-off and invasive species on these reefs, working closely with Cuban partners and overcoming the challenges of establishing collaborative projects between countries with strong ecological ties, despite tenuous diplomatic ones. She has also worked extensively in the Asia-Pacific region (primarily the north-west Hawaiian Islands, the Marshall Islands, the Line Islands, Fiji and Papua New Guinea), with an emphasis on assessing reef accretion and environmental change on Pacific atolls, using a combination of in situ biodiversity surveys, geochemical proxies and benthic habitat mapping.

Timothy Gordon

Marine biologist, University of Exeter

Timothy Gordon

Marine biologist, University of Exeter

Tim Gordon is a marine biologist from the University of Exeter (UK) and the Australian Institute of Marine Science. His research focuses on the impact of climate change on the oceans, and has recently taken him to some of the most severely degraded ecosystems in the world. Working in the Central Arctic Ocean and on the Great Barrier Reef, he has witnessed and recorded first-hand the devastating impacts of climate change. Collaborating with teams of scientists from around the world, he aims to further understand the challenges and opportunities presented by the state of our marine ecosystems today. Even amidst melting ice caps and bleached corals, he believes there is hope for the future of the oceans.

Ove Hoegh-Guldberg

Director, The Global Change Institute, University of Queensland

Ove Hoegh-Guldberg

Director, The Global Change Institute, University of Queensland

A leading contributor to the scientific literature on climate change, Ove Hoegh-Guldberg has travelled from Antarctica to the tropics to understand the impacts of climate change on the ocean, and to communicate the seriousness of its consequences. As a result, he has worked on numerous film projects with filmmakers such as Sir David Attenborough, Richard Smith and Jeff Orlowski (Chasing Coral). Mr Hoegh-Guldberg was the co-ordinating lead author for the “Oceans” chapter for the Fifth Assessment Report of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The fortunate recipient of several awards for his work, he has also received a Eureka Prize, Australian Research Council Laureate Fellowship and Queensland Premier’s Fellowship, as well as the 2014 Prince Albert II Award for Climate Change and the 2016 Banksia International Award.

Roz Savage

Senior fellow, Jackson Institute for Global Affairs, Yale University

Roz Savage

Senior fellow, Jackson Institute for Global Affairs, Yale University

Roz Savage writes, speaks and lectures on sustainability, courage, resilience and change. She is the first (and so far only) woman to row solo across the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. She holds four Guinness World Records, and was appointed a member of the Order of the British Empire for services to fundraising and the environment.
Formerly a management consultant, Ms Savage was inspired to brave the oceans when she realised that we are all capable of much more than we tend to believe we are, and we need to make some changes if we're going to live healthy lives on a thriving planet. She has used her voyages to expand her own limits, and to promote sustainable living.

Ariel Booker

Co-founder, CanO Water

Ariel Booker

Co-founder, CanO Water

Ariel Booker is co-founder of CanO Water. Mr Booker left his job in finance to focus on CanO Water as he saw a gap in the market and was keen to educate people on the benefits of using aluminium instead of plastic. The founders of CanO Water came up with the idea for a canned water product as aluminium is the most recyclable material on the planet. The message is simple: recycle your can and it will come back as another.

Susan Shaw

Susan Shaw

Susan Shaw is an American environmental health scientist, explorer, author, and ocean conservationist. She is founder and director of the Marine & Environmental Research Institute, and adjunct professor at the University at Albany’s School of Public Health. Ms Shaw is a globally recognized expert on the health effects of environmental chemical exposure. Over three decades, her research has fuelled public policy nationally and globally. Her 1983 book OverExposure, written with landscape photographer Ansel Adams, exposed the health hazards of photographic chemicals.

An outspoken voice on ocean pollution, Ms Shaw dove into the 2010 BP oil spill and influenced the national debate on the dangers of dispersant chemicals. She appeared in several films on the Gulf disaster, including Animal Planet’s Black Tide: Voices of the Gulf and Green Planet’s The Big Fix.Currently, Ms Shaw leads an international team addressing the compound threat of pollution and climate change across three oceans.

Sheila Paterson

Sheila Paterson

Sheila Paterson joined the Centre for Ocean Ventures and Entrepreneurship, COVE, in February 2016 as chief operating officer. She builds relationships with industry, researchers, facilitating organisations, and governments for the application and commercialisation of world-class ocean innovation.

Previously, Ms Paterson worked with the Province of Nova Scotia in roles with the ministries of energy, economic development, intergovernmental affairs, and environment to enhance the capacity of the local supply chain and advance international links. In the private sector, she led a custom electronics product design group, worked in process engineering with a high-tech electronics manufacturer, and in continuous improvement engineering in the aerospace sector.

Ms Paterson graduated from Dalhousie University with degrees in Chemical Engineering and in Science, and sits on the board of directors for Marine Renewables Canada and for the Ocean Technology Council of Nova Scotia.

Citlali Gomez

President of the board, COMEPESCA

Citlali Gomez

President of the board, COMEPESCA

Citlali Gomez is a biologist who specialises in rural aquaculture. She is the chief executive officer of Neminatura, family-owned business specialising in raising rainbow trout and bullfrog, and is also the president of the board of Consejo Mexicano de Promoción de los Productos Pesqueros y Acuícolas (COMEPESCA).

‘Aulani Wilhelm

Senior vice-president for oceans, Conservation International

‘Aulani Wilhelm

Senior vice-president for oceans, Conservation International

'Aulani Wilhelm spent 20 years in natural resource management, primarily ocean conservation, leading the designation of what is now the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument and World Heritage site in Hawai'i. Ms Wilhelm is senior vice-president for oceans at Conservation International. Prior to that she was director for ocean initiatives at the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries in the United States’ National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and a Social Innovation Fellow at Stanford University. She founded Island Water, a social venture to provide clean water and reduce plastic pollution on islands, and Big Ocean, a global network of large-scale marine managed areas. Ms Wilhelm is chair of the IUCN-WCPA Large-Scale Marine Protected Area Task Force. A long-time member of the Polynesian Voyaging Society, Ms Wilhelm was a crew member on the historic three-year worldwide voyage of Hōkūleʻa, the Hawaiian voyaging canoe that has helped lead the revival of oceanic wayfinding and non-instrument navigation across the Pacific.

Sam Teicher

Founder and chief reef officer, Coral Vita

Sam Teicher

Founder and chief reef officer, Coral Vita

Sam Teicher co-founded Coral Vita, a company that grows corals to restore dying reefs. It uses breakthrough methods to grow corals in months instead of decades, improve their resiliency to climate change and scale up restoration to help counter global reef degradation. Through large-scale restoration, Coral Vita works to protect the prosperity and health of communities, nations and industries that rely upon reefs’ valuable benefits.

Mr Teicher previously helped launch a UN-funded coral-farming project at ELI Africa in partnership with the Mauritius Oceanography Institute, and worked to implement climate resiliency initiatives at the White House Council on Environmental Quality and for the Global Island Partnership.

He is on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list, is an Echoing Green Climate Fellow and created a Fast Company World Changing Idea. Mr Teicher received his master’s degree from Yale, and has been in love with reefs since childhood.

Amanda Leland

Senior vice-president, oceans, Environmental Defense Fund

Amanda Leland

Senior vice-president, oceans, Environmental Defense Fund

Amanda Leland is senior vice-president for Environmental Defense Fund Oceans. She leads a diverse team of scientists, lawyers, and advocates for healthy and abundant oceans.

Ms Leland develops and implements strategies to develop productive and profitable fisheries, and her team is building on its past progress in U.S. and international fishing to deliver a global agenda that will result in more fish in the water, more food on the plate, and more prosperous communities.

Under Mr Leland’s leadership, the Oceans Program has catalyzed reforms and advanced tangible results for people and the oceans in nine countries in North and Central America, Europe, and Southeast Asia.

Nina Goodrich

Nina Goodrich

Nina Goodrich is director of the Sustainable Packaging Coalition and executive director of GreenBlue. GreenBlue is dedicated to researching and promoting the principles of sustainable materials management that seek to help industry use materials wisely, promote material health and recover more. She believes in the power of the circular economy to provide growth without waste.

Ms Goodrich came to GreenBlue with an industry and consultancy background in research and development (R&D) management, innovation and sustainability strategy. She believes that innovation and sustainability are linked as key drivers for our future. She has held leadership positions in R&D with Alcan Packaging, Amcor, the Guelph Food Technology Centre and Magic Pantry Foods. She has worked to develop a value proposition for sustainability and to share it with all who will listen.

Ms Goodrich has done graduate work in technology management and holds a BA in molecular biology from Wellesley College. Regarded as a thought leader in the field, she speaks and writes frequently on the convergence of sustainability, innovation and technology.

Torsten Thiele

Founder and managing partner, Global Ocean Trust

Torsten Thiele

Founder and managing partner, Global Ocean Trust

Torsten Thiele is an expert in ocean finance, promoting sustainable marine governance based on innovative solutions. As senior adviser to the IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature) Blue Natural Capital Finance Facility, lead on the London School of Economics IGA Blue Finance Initiative and research associate at the Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies, he contributes to a wide range of ocean efforts, drawing on his many years of experience in project and infrastructure finance with major banks. Mr Thiele holds graduate degrees from Bonn, Harvard and Cambridge Universities. He speaks and publishes regularly on ocean issues.

Shyang Bian

Founder, H2earth

Shyang Bian

Founder, H2earth

Shyang Bian is the founder of H2earth, a startup dedicated to reducing the use of single-use plastic bottles. Mr Bian has five years of experience in finance and operations, which includes managing finance for a startup. He holds a degree in finance from Baruch College.

Michael Jones

Founder and president, The Maritime Alliance

Michael Jones

Founder and president, The Maritime Alliance

Rupert Howes

Chief executive officer, Marine Stewardship Council

Rupert Howes

Chief executive officer, Marine Stewardship Council

Rupert Howes has served as the chief executive officer of the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) since October 2004. The MSC contributes to the health of the world’s oceans by recognizing and rewarding sustainable fishing practices, influencing the choices people make when buying seafood, and working with conservation and industry partners to make the global seafood market environmentally sustainable.

Prior to this Mr Howes was director of the sustainable economy programme at Forum for the Future, an influential UK-based sustainable development organization that partners with businesses, capital markets, governments, and others to accelerate the transition to a more sustainable way of life. Mr Howes has also been a senior research fellow at the Science Policy Research Unit of the University of Sussex, and a research officer at the International Institute for Environment and Development.

Marissa Cuevas

Co-founder and chief executive officer, microTERRA

Marissa Cuevas

Co-founder and chief executive officer, microTERRA

Marissa Cuevas is the co-founder and chief executive officer of microTERRA, a startup which develops technology to harvest fertilizer from runoff. She is an energy engineer by training. She holds a bachelor’s degree from the Technical University of Berlin and a master’s degree in sustainable management from Columbia University.

In 2017 Ms Cuevas participated in the Global Solutions Program at Singularity University. Prior to this she worked for the German Cooperation Agency as an energy advisor and external senior consultant. In 2014 Ms Cuevas founded Kitcel, a startup focused on upcycling styrofoam waste and transforming it into wood varnish and coatings.

Sylvia Earle

President and chairman, Mission Blue

Sylvia Earle

President and chairman, Mission Blue

Emily Woglom

Executive vice-president, Ocean Conservancy

Emily Woglom

Executive vice-president, Ocean Conservancy

Steven Adler

Ocean Data Alliance

Steven Adler

Ocean Data Alliance

Steve Adler is a leader in data governance and strategy. He is a pioneer in the fields of internet insurance, data governance, data strategy and people data, and he patented the IBM enterprise privacy architecture. In 2014, he organised Africa Open Data Jams to help West Africa fight the Ebola outbreak, and gave a TEDx talk on this experience. In 2015, he was appointed to the US Commerce Department Data Advisory Council, the nation’s first federal advisory council focused on how data can improve economic growth. In 2016, he organised the Data Cooking Show in Lima, helping 300 Peruvian journalists learn that working with data is as easy as cooking with a good recipe.

For 21 years at IBM, Mr Adler was a thought leader, product developer and company evangelist. He travelled the world, representing IBM in senior leadership forums, welcoming new hires and selling the IBM vision. In his last year at IBM, he created a new programme to use Watson to identify objects in satellite images.

Mr Adler was recognised as one of the Top 100 Most Influential People in Finance by Treasury and Risk magazine. He has given hundreds of TV, radio, online and print interviews, and he continues to work as a force for change in the world.

Alexandra Cousteau

Senior advisor, Oceana

Alexandra Cousteau

Senior advisor, Oceana

Doug Woodring

Founder and managing director, Ocean Recovery Alliance

Doug Woodring

Founder and managing director, Ocean Recovery Alliance

Carter Ries

Co-founder, One More Generation

Carter Ries

Co-founder, One More Generation

Carter Ries (16) and his sister, Olivia Ries (15), founded One More Generation (OMG) in 2009 in an effort to help clean up the environment and save endangered species. Based on their experiences helping with animal-rescue efforts during the 2010 Gulf oil spill, they developed the Plastic and Recycling Awareness Curriculum, a week-long programme that is offered in schools throughout the US. It is being tested in the UK and will soon be tested in Australia.

Their passion and commitment have garnered them invitations to speak at the UN and the White House. They have attended three of the four Our Ocean conferences, and they regularly get invited to speak at conferences around the world. Their most recent initiative targeting single-use plastics, the OneLessStraw pledge campaign, has received thousands of pledges from around the world and attracted partnerships from over 400 organisations.
They sit on the youth advisory board of numerous organisations, and their latest efforts target the effects of climate change on the oceans. They are collaborating with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation and the Ocean First Institute to create a K-12 curriculum on the issue of plastic pollution.

Olivia Ries

Co-founder, One More Generation

Olivia Ries

Co-founder, One More Generation

Olivia Ries (15) and her brother, Carter Ries (16), founded One More Generation (OMG) in 2009 in an effort to help clean up the environment and save endangered species. Based on their experiences helping with animal-rescue efforts during the 2010 Gulf oil spill, they developed the Plastic and Recycling Awareness Curriculum, a week-long programme that is offered in schools throughout the US. It is being tested in the UK and will soon be tested in Australia.

Their passion and commitment have garnered them invitations to speak at the UN and the White House. They have attended three of the four Our Ocean conferences, and they regularly get invited to speak at conferences around the world. Their most recent initiative targeting single-use plastics, the OneLessStraw pledge campaign, has received thousands of pledges from around the world and attracted partnerships from over 400 organisations.
They sit on the youth advisory board of numerous organisations, and their latest efforts target the effects of climate change on the oceans. They are collaborating with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation and the Ocean First Institute to create a K-12 curriculum on the issue of plastic pollution.

James Deutsch

Director, biodiversity Paul G. Allen Philanthropies

James Deutsch

Director, biodiversity Paul G. Allen Philanthropies

JamesDeutsch is a global leader in conservation strategy. He spent the past five months interviewing over 140 global experts on coral reef conservation to establish an expert consensus on the dimensions of the crisis facing coral reefs as well as strategies for ensuring their survival. Mr Deutsch’s appointments have included Lecturer in Conservation Biology at Imperial College, London, vice-president of conservation strategy at the Wildlife Conservation Society, and director of biodiversity at Paul G. Allen Philanthropies. His work on corals has included detailed investigation into potential ways to promote coral resilience; ways to scale up restoration, global mapping and monitoring; and securing popular, policy, and financial support. Paul G. Allen Philanthropies currently supports 50 Reefs and human assisted evolution research at the University of Hawaii and Australia Institute for Marine Sciences.

Tom Dillon

Tom Dillon

Tom Dillon oversees The Pew Charitable Trusts’ international environment portfolio, which advances conservation and ocean governance around the world. Mr Dillon’s ocean work at Pew includes efforts to establish marine reserves, end illegal fishing, ensure sustainable fisheries and encourage governments to put policies in place that protect, maintain and restore the health of marine ecosystems. He also works to conserve large landscapes such as the Australian Outback and the Chilean Patagonia. Before joining Pew, Mr Dillon served as senior vice-president at World Wildlife Fund (WWF) for ten years directing land and marine programmes in the United States and in Asia, Africa and Latin America. While living in Asia, he was a leader in creating WWF’s Mekong programme, which includes Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam. Mr Dillon holds a master’s degree in environment studies from Yale University.

Alex Mauboussin

Artist, 'Please Recycle'

Alex Mauboussin

Artist, 'Please Recycle'

Alex Mauboussin makes music out of repurposed materials to raise awareness for marine waste and bring attention to the value of the things we throw out. He started working on his musical recycling project, ‘Please Recycle’, about a year ago. Mr Mauboussin lives and works in Los Angeles. He is an artist, activist, composer, and video producer.

Dan Watson

Founder, SafetyNet Technologies

Dan Watson

Founder, SafetyNet Technologies

Dan Watson founded and runs SafetyNet Technologies, a hardware startup in the commercial fishing sector. SafetyNet builds light-emitting devices which fit into fishing nets and use visible light to attract or repel organisms in specific ways. The project has partnered with academics and industrial entities to explore how light can be used to raise the selectivity of the catch, as well as how the technology can be easily and affordably applied to everyday fishing practices.

Mr Watson was inspired to start working on this project when, as a student, he read about fishermen being arrested for throwing fish back into the sea because they didn't have the tools to avoid catching the wrong ones.

Sebastian Nicholls

Founder and chief executive officer, SeaBlue Consulting

Sebastian Nicholls

Founder and chief executive officer, SeaBlue Consulting

Sebastian Nicholls is a young ocean conservation leader. His petitions advocating for the expansion of MPAs and for a standalone Sustainable Development Goal on oceans were delivered to the White House and UN in 2014. Mr Nicholls has also planned four global student ocean conservation conferences at Georgetown University from 2014-2017. Mr Nicholls was the main student organizer of the first Our Ocean Youth Summit, where he interviewed the science advisor to President Obama and created an ocean action map to facilitate youth collaboration on ocean solutions.

Jonsen Carmack

Co-founder and chief executive officer, SeaStatus Marine Weather

Jonsen Carmack

Co-founder and chief executive officer, SeaStatus Marine Weather

Jonsen Carmack is a graduate from the University of California, Santa Barbara and has built things as a product marketer and product manager. He is committed to making an impact on the future of the oceans and meeting people who can help make that happen.

Martin Callow

Martin Callow

Martin Callow is chief executive officer of Seychelles’ Conservation and Climate Adaptation Trust (SeyCCAT). A marine conservationist by training, Mr Callow has spent a large part of his career working with small islands and coastal developing states, including Fiji, Seychelles, and Myanmar. He was appointed chief executive officer of SeyCCAT in 2017, a responsibility that sees him leading the public-private fund that was structured by the Government of Seychelles and The Nature Conservancy. Mr Callow is working with partners to develop and support other mechanisms to boost financial flows to Seychelles' blue economy – including a Blue Enterprise Fund, and Seychelles US15m Blue Bond, which is being finalised between the Government of Seychelles and the World Bank’s SWIOFish3 project team and partners.

Victor Zykov

Director of research, Schmidt Ocean Institute

Victor Zykov

Director of research, Schmidt Ocean Institute

Daniela Fernandez

Founder and chief executive officer, Sustainable Ocean Alliance

Daniela Fernandez

Founder and chief executive officer, Sustainable Ocean Alliance

Daniela Fernandez is a social entrepreneur, speaker and writer. She is the founder and chief executive officer of Sustainable Ocean Alliance (SOA), a global organisation that advances the impact of start-ups, social enterprises and community projects that are developing solutions to protect and sustain our ocean. Ms Fernandez has been recognised for her work by former US Secretary of State John Kerry and EU Commissioner Karmenu Vella. She was listed among Azula’s Top 5 Ocean Heroes of 2016, named one of Glamour magazine’s 2016 Young Women of the Year, and received the Peter Benchley Ocean Award and the 2016 Bustle Upstart Award. Ms Fernandez is a contributor to the National Geographic blog and Sustainable Brands, and she has been interviewed by Voice of America, New York City TV and Ocean Radio. She has been a speaker at The Economist World Ocean Summit, United Nations, Net Impact Conference, US Capitol Hill Ocean Week, Sustainable Brands Conference, Blue Vision Summit, World Ocean Festival and WE Day.

Isabel Studer

Isabel Studer

Isabel Studer is currently the Executive Director of The Nature Conservancy (TNC) for Mexico and Northern Central America. Her professional career has spanned across the public and academic sectors. Prior to being appointed to lead TNC, Ms Studer was the general director of the
international economic cooperation of the Mexican Agency for International Development. She has served as the general deputy director for Canada in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and as general director for North America in the Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources in
Mexico. She founded and directed the Global Institute for Sustainability at Monterrey Tech.

Ms Studer is a member of the advisory board of the French Development Agency in Mexico, the board of directors for the World Environment Centre and the Sustainability Expert Advisory Council of Dow Chemical. She holds a master’s degree and PhD in international relations from Johns Hopkins University.

Peter Thomson

Special envoy for the ocean, United Nations

Peter Thomson

Special envoy for the ocean, United Nations

Peter Thomson of Fiji was appointed UN Secretary-general’s special envoy for the ocean in October 2017. Mr Thomson was the president of the 71st session of the UN General Assembly. Previously, he served as Fiji’s permanent representative to the United Nations in New York. For the duration of 2013, he chaired the UN’s largest negotiating bloc, the Group of 77 and China. In 2014, he served as president of the executive board of the UN Development Programme / UN Population Fund / UN Office for Programme Support.
Between 1972 and 1987, Mr Thomson was a civil servant in the government of Fiji working in the fields of rural development and foreign affairs. In 1978, he joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Suva. His postings included Japan, Australia and Fiji. In Fiji he served as permanent secretary of information and permanent secretary to the governor-general before resigning from the civil service in 1987. Mr Thomson resumed diplomatic duties in 2010.

Vladimir Ryabinin

Karin Kemper

Senior director, Environment and Natural Resources Global Practice, The World Bank Group

Karin Kemper

Senior director, Environment and Natural Resources Global Practice, The World Bank Group

Karin Kemper leads the World Bank’s environment and natural-resources global practice, which provides financing, technical assistance and knowledge solutions in areas as far reaching as the blue economy, pollution management, and forests, landscapes and climate. Ms Kemper has served in a range of functions at the World Bank, including as the senior regional adviser in the office of the vice-president of the Latin America and Caribbean region. Earlier, she was the director of climate policy and finance, and she also held management positions in environment and water-resources management in South Asia and the Latin America and Caribbean regions.

An institutional economist, Ms Kemper has published extensively on the economics of water-resources management and has led studies on natural-resources and environmental management worldwide. She holds a PhD in water and environmental studies and a BSc in international business administration and economics from Linköping University in Sweden.

Andrew Steer

President and chief executive officer, World Resources Institute

Andrew Steer

President and chief executive officer, World Resources Institute

Andrew Steer is president and chief executive officer of the World Resources Institute (WRI), an international “research-into-action” organization that works in more than 50 countries, addressing urgent global challenges at the intersection of economic development and the natural environment. WRI’s goal is to advance economic, social, and political options that will shift behavior and systems away from low-efficiency, high-polluting, and resource-depleting patterns towards sustainable, efficient and more prosperous paths.

Mr Steer has held senior positions at the World Bank, which included director for Indonesia and Vietnam, director of environment, and special envoy for climate change. Mr Steer has also worked in the British government, where he was director general at the UK Department for International Development. He has a PhD in economics.

Pavan Sukhdev

President, WWF International

Pavan Sukhdev

President, WWF International

Pavan Sukhdev is a scientist by education, an international banker by training, and an environmental economist by passion. Years of work in sustainability and on the invisible economics of nature led to his appointment as head of the United Nations’ Green Economy Initiative, and appointment as lead of the G8+5 study ‘The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity’ (TEEB).

In his book Corporation 2020, Mr Sukhdev describes four changes in micro-policy and regulation which can deliver tomorrow’s green and equitable ‘economy of permanence’. As founder and chief executive officer of GIST Advisory, Mr Sukhdev works with C-suite executives and senior government officials on transition techniques, with an emphasis on metrics.

Mr Sukhdev is a Goodwill Ambassador for UN Environment, promoting TEEB implementation and green economy transitions. He has served on the boards of Conservation International (CI), the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), and the Stockholm Resilience Centre (SRC).

Erin Simon

Director, sustainability research and development, WWF US

Erin Simon

Director, sustainability research and development, WWF US

Zanny Minton Beddoes

Editor-in-chief, The Economist

Zanny Minton Beddoes

Editor-in-chief, The Economist

Zanny Minton Beddoes is the editor-in-chief of The Economist, appointed in 2015. She was formerly business affairs editor overseeing the paper's

business, finance, economics, science and technology coverage. From 2007 to 2014, Zanny was economics editor, based in Washington, DC, where she led the paper's global economics coverage. She has written special reports on the world economy, Germany, Latin American finance, global finance

and Central Asia. Zanny joined The Economist in 1994 after two years as an economist at the International Monetary Fund. Previously, she worked

as an adviser to the Minister of Finance in Poland, as part of a small group headed by Professor Jeffrey Sachs of Harvard University. Zanny is

a frequent television and radio commentator on both sides of the Atlantic.

Charles Goddard

Executive director, World Ocean Initiative

Charles Goddard

Executive director, World Ocean Initiative

Charles Goddard leads the Economist Intelligence Unit’s editorial services in Asia-Pacific, including Corporate Network, a peer group for senior decision-makers of global businesses operating in the region. A journalist by background, he has worked across a range of publications and services at the Economist Intelligence Unit, including as author of the China Market Atlas series and director of its research divisions. A frequent traveller and speaker, he interacts regularly with business and government leaders across Asia. He is also executive director of The Economist’s World Ocean Summit, a global series of events on the sustainable use of our seas.

Daniel Franklin

Executive editor, The Economist

Daniel Franklin

Executive editor, The Economist

Daniel Franklin has been Executive Editor of The Economist since 2006 and Editor since 2003 of The Economist‘s annual publication, “The World in…”; which focuses on the year ahead. His book on long-term trends, “Megachange: The World in 2050”, was published in 2012. Mr Franklin joined The Economist in 1983 to write about Soviet and East European affairs. As the newspaper’s Europe Editor from 1986 to 1992 he covered the great European upheavals, from the collapse of communism to the signing of the Maastricht treaty. After a stint as Britain Editor he moved to the United States as Washington Bureau Chief, covering the first Clinton term. In 1997 he moved back to London as Editorial Director of The Economist Intelligence Unit. From 2006 to 2010 he was Editor-in-Chief of Economist.com. For the following four years he was Business Affairs Editor, running the paper’s coverage of business, finance, science and technology. He helps with new initiatives undertaken by The Economist Group. His special report on corporate social responsibility, "Just good business", was published in 2008.

Fiona Mackie

Regional director, Latin America, Economist Intelligence Unit

Fiona Mackie

Regional director, Latin America, Economist Intelligence Unit

As regional director for Latin America at the Economist Intelligence Unit, Fiona Mackie leads a team of analysts producing political and economic analysis and macroeconomic forecasts for the Latin America region. She has a strong background in sovereign and operational risk, and has covered most of the region's major economies and sub-regions. She has many years' experience covering Argentina, Venezuela and Mexico. Fiona frequently represents the company in the media, with clients and at conferences. She has a BA in political science from the University of Chicago and an MSc in financial economics from the University of London (SOAS).

Andrew Palmer

Business affairs editor, The Economist

Andrew Palmer

Business affairs editor, The Economist

Andrew Palmer is the business affairs editor at The Economist, where he has responsibility for the newspaper’s business, finance and science coverage. Among other roles he was previously the newspaper’s finance editor and Americas editor. He has authored special reports on international banking, property and financial innovation. Before joining The Economist in 2007 he held a variety of editorial and management positions at The Economist Intelligence Unit. Before joining The Economist Group, he monitored media coverage of elections in Eastern Europe on behalf of the European Union. He has degrees from Oxford University and the London School of Economics.

Jan Piotrowski

Environment correspondent, The Economist

Jan Piotrowski

Environment correspondent, The Economist

Jan Piotrowski is The Economist's São Paulo bureau chief. Previously he was the online science editor from 2010, having joined The Economist following a three-month stint as the Richard Casement science intern in 2008. He is a regular contributor to "The World In" annual compilation of forecasts, which examines the critical issues that will shape the year ahead, as well as a number of Economist blogs, including Americas View, Babbage and Game Theory. Mr Piotrowski holds a PhD in linguistics and philosophy from Warsaw University, where he lectured in semantics and translation theory. Before joining The Economist, he also worked as a translator and interpreter.

Agenda

Conference registration

Welcome remarks

Zanny Minton Beddoes

Zanny Minton Beddoes

Editor-in-chief, The Economist

Zanny Minton Beddoes is the editor-in-chief of The Economist, appointed in 2015. She was formerly business affairs editor overseeing the paper's

business, finance, economics, science and technology coverage. From 2007 to 2014, Zanny was economics editor, based in Washington, DC, where she led the paper's global economics coverage. She has written special reports on the world economy, Germany, Latin American finance, global finance

and Central Asia. Zanny joined The Economist in 1994 after two years as an economist at the International Monetary Fund. Previously, she worked

as an adviser to the Minister of Finance in Poland, as part of a small group headed by Professor Jeffrey Sachs of Harvard University. Zanny is

a frequent television and radio commentator on both sides of the Atlantic.

1:45 PM

Panel discussion: Ocean science that’s fit for purpose

Barely a week goes by without a new scientific revelation regarding the ocean. Yet spending on ocean science remains a fraction of overall science spending, and falls far short of what is needed. This is true for pure science as much as for applied science, which provides evidence for decisions about how to use the ocean sustainably. Clearly, ramping up ocean science must be a greater priority—but how, and who pays?

Beth A Christensen

Director, Environmental Studies Program, Adelphi University

Beth A Christensen

Director, Environmental Studies Program, Adelphi University

Beth Christensen is a marine geologist and director of the Environmental Studies Program at Adelphi University, where she is a tenured professor. She studies marine sediments to understand past ocean and climate systems. Professor Christensen has sailed on multiple US research vessels in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans, explored underwater canyons in DSV-2 Alvin, and spent over a year of her life at sea. Her research has been supported by the National Science Foundation and the Office of Naval Research, among others, and she regularly publishes with US and international collaborators. Professor Christensen served as chair of the US Advisory Committee for Scientific Ocean Drilling and sits on the programme’s curatorial advisory board. She holds degrees from Rutgers University and the University of South Carolina.

Steven Adler

Ocean Data Alliance

Steven Adler

Ocean Data Alliance

Steve Adler is a leader in data governance and strategy. He is a pioneer in the fields of internet insurance, data governance, data strategy and people data, and he patented the IBM enterprise privacy architecture. In 2014, he organised Africa Open Data Jams to help West Africa fight the Ebola outbreak, and gave a TEDx talk on this experience. In 2015, he was appointed to the US Commerce Department Data Advisory Council, the nation’s first federal advisory council focused on how data can improve economic growth. In 2016, he organised the Data Cooking Show in Lima, helping 300 Peruvian journalists learn that working with data is as easy as cooking with a good recipe.

For 21 years at IBM, Mr Adler was a thought leader, product developer and company evangelist. He travelled the world, representing IBM in senior leadership forums, welcoming new hires and selling the IBM vision. In his last year at IBM, he created a new programme to use Watson to identify objects in satellite images.

Mr Adler was recognised as one of the Top 100 Most Influential People in Finance by Treasury and Risk magazine. He has given hundreds of TV, radio, online and print interviews, and he continues to work as a force for change in the world.

David Golden

Chief legal and sustainability officer; corporate secretary, Eastman

David Golden

Chief legal and sustainability officer; corporate secretary, Eastman

David A. Golden is senior vice-president, chief legal and sustainability officer, and corporate secretary for Eastman. He is responsible for Eastman’s legal, sustainability, corporate HSES, global public affairs, and policy departments, as well as Eastman’s ethics and compliance programme.

As president of the Eastman Foundation, Mr Golden believes small actions can have large effects, and that collaboration leads to catalytic and transformation innovation. He serves on several boards and advisory councils aligned with Eastman’s corporate partnership initiatives, focusing in the areas of education, empowerment, economic development, and the environment.

Mr Golden is passionate about the importance of understanding the ocean and how it impacts our changing world. Under his leadership, Eastman is committed to better understanding the blue economy, and what it means for our business and for our global environment.

Gary Gysin

Chief executive officer, Liquid Robotics, A Boeing Company

Gary Gysin

Chief executive officer, Liquid Robotics, A Boeing Company

As president and chief executive officer of Liquid Robotics, A Boeing Company, Gary Gysin leads the company whose pioneering technology is fundamentally changing the way the world accesses, collects and monitors ocean data through the innovative use of ocean robots. Under his leadership, he guided the company through a successful acquisition by Boeing.

Over his 30-year career, Mr Gysin has been recognised as an innovative and high-energy executive with a reputation for transforming start-ups into global businesses. Prior to Liquid Robotics, he held leadership positions at high-technology companies such as Silver Spring Networks, McData Corporation, Asempra, PGSoft, Novell/Volera and Crosswise Communications. While leading Asempra and PGSoft as the chief executive officer, Mr Gysin led the successful growth and subsequent sales of both Silicon Valley start-up companies.

Mr Gysin serves on a variety of industry councils for oceans and national security. He earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of California, Santa Cruz.

Victor Zykov

Director of research, Schmidt Ocean Institute

Victor Zykov

Director of research, Schmidt Ocean Institute

Daniela Fernandez

Founder and chairperson, Sustainable Oceans Alliance

Daniela Fernandez

Founder and chairperson, Sustainable Oceans Alliance

Daniela Fernandez is the founder and chair of the Sustainable Oceans Alliance (SOA), a global organisation that empowers millennials to become leaders in preserving the health and sustainability of our ocean. After a trip to the United Nations in 2013, where she learned that fisheries could collapse by 2050, affecting the global economy, food chains and marine life, Ms Fernandez decided to take action. She organised the first annual Sustainable Oceans Summit, which convened millennials, NGOs, business executives and policy leaders to discuss the challenges and potential solutions surrounding ocean sustainability.

Under her leadership, 40 university chapters have been created worldwide two annual summits have broadcast globally engaging US embassies and over 3,000 participants. SOA has also partnered with the US State Department to co-host the “Our Ocean” leadership summit, attracting high-level government officials and over 150 international students. She is a contributor to National Geographic and The Economist Intelligence Unit, and has spoken at Capitol Hill Ocean Week, UN Nexus Summit, World Affairs Council conference, WE Day Illinois and has been invited to the United Nations to present a petition on behalf of the millennial generation in anticipation of the Sustainable Development Goal vote.

Ms Fernandez has been recognised for her work by US Secretary of State John Kerry, named one of Glamour magazine’s College Women of the Year, received the Peter Benchley Ocean Youth Award, the 2016 Bustle Upstart award, has been listed as a Top 5 Ocean Hero of 2016, and is a Green 2.0 environmental leader.

2:55 PM

Spotlight on science

The latest on the state of the ocean, and the science that we can look forward to in 2018 and beyond, including tipping points, planetary boundaries and changes in the cryosphere.

Ove Hoegh-Guldberg

Director, The Global Change Institute, University of Queensland

Ove Hoegh-Guldberg

Director, The Global Change Institute, University of Queensland

A leading contributor to the scientific literature on climate change, Ove Hoegh-Guldberg has travelled from Antarctica to the tropics to understand the impacts of climate change on the ocean, and to communicate the seriousness of its consequences. As a result, he has worked on numerous film projects with filmmakers such as Sir David Attenborough, Richard Smith and Jeff Orlowski (Chasing Coral). Mr Hoegh-Guldberg was the co-ordinating lead author for the “Oceans” chapter for the Fifth Assessment Report of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The fortunate recipient of several awards for his work, he has also received a Eureka Prize, Australian Research Council Laureate Fellowship and Queensland Premier’s Fellowship, as well as the 2014 Prince Albert II Award for Climate Change and the 2016 Banksia International Award.

3:10 PM

Ocean futures

From the next generation, a preview of new thinking and ideas that will reshape the ocean economy.

Dan Watson

Founder, SafetyNet Technologies

Dan Watson

Founder, SafetyNet Technologies

Dan Watson founded and runs SafetyNet Technologies, a hardware startup in the commercial fishing sector. SafetyNet builds light-emitting devices which fit into fishing nets and use visible light to attract or repel organisms in specific ways. The project has partnered with academics and industrial entities to explore how light can be used to raise the selectivity of the catch, as well as how the technology can be easily and affordably applied to everyday fishing practices.

Mr Watson was inspired to start working on this project when, as a student, he read about fishermen being arrested for throwing fish back into the sea because they didn't have the tools to avoid catching the wrong ones.

3:20 PM

Networking break

3:50 PM

Panel discussion: Innovation and technology in the blue economy

Innovation and technology will be important drivers of the blue economy. Hand in hand with these will be maritime clusters. Whether rejuvenated marine rust belts, or greenfield, blue-tech and born new, clusters capture a vibrant ocean entrepreneurialism by building links between science, education and business, often with a focus on technology and sustainability. What role do governments play in promoting innovation and technology in the blue economy? Is the private sector ready to take advantage?

Sheila Paterson

Sheila Paterson

Sheila Paterson joined the Centre for Ocean Ventures and Entrepreneurship, COVE, in February 2016 as chief operating officer. She builds relationships with industry, researchers, facilitating organisations, and governments for the application and commercialisation of world-class ocean innovation.

Previously, Ms Paterson worked with the Province of Nova Scotia in roles with the ministries of energy, economic development, intergovernmental affairs, and environment to enhance the capacity of the local supply chain and advance international links. In the private sector, she led a custom electronics product design group, worked in process engineering with a high-tech electronics manufacturer, and in continuous improvement engineering in the aerospace sector.

Ms Paterson graduated from Dalhousie University with degrees in Chemical Engineering and in Science, and sits on the board of directors for Marine Renewables Canada and for the Ocean Technology Council of Nova Scotia.

Rolando Morillo

Vice-president, sustainability and impact group, Rockefeller & Co

Rolando Morillo

Vice-president, sustainability and impact group, Rockefeller & Co

Michael Jones

Founder and president, The Maritime Alliance

Michael Jones

Founder and president, The Maritime Alliance

Ana Paula Vitorino

Minister of sea, Portugal

Ana Paula Vitorino

Minister of sea, Portugal

Ana Paula Vitorino serves as minister of sea for the government of Portugal. She has been a member of the Portuguese National Assembly since 2009. Between 2005 and 2009, she was secretary of state for transport.

Ms Vitorino has published several articles in scientific and technical journals on matters regarding transport, infrastructure, logistics and the maritime economy. Between 1989 and 1990 she was invited to teach as assistant professor at Instituto Superior Técnico on a wide range of disciplines, including urban planning, transport, architecture and Earth resources.

She was a partner in TransNetWork Consultancy, which provides services in Portugal, Africa and Latin America. Between 2010 and 2012, she was a non-executive board member of the Hydroelectric of Cahora Bassa.
Ms Vitorino has a degree in civil engineering, with a specialisation in urban development and transport (1986), and a master in transport (1992) from the Instituto Superior Técnico.

Mohamed Yousef Al Madfaei

Discussion: The future of aquaculture

As the world continues to develop, the demand for seafood is only set to increase. Although fisheries are beginning to recover, wild production cannot keep up with growing demand. Aquaculture shows promise in filling this shortfall, but to reach scale, we must think differently about how we approach it. In this short presentation, Geir Molvik, chief executive officer of Cermaq, will explore the innovations and experiments in aquaculture that it will take to meet our 21st century needs.

Geir Molvik

Chief executive officer, Cermaq

Geir Molvik

Chief executive officer, Cermaq

Geir Molvik became CEO of Cermaq in July 2016. Mr Molvik joined the Cermaq Group as managing director for EWOS Norway in 2006; he was appointed chief operating officer of farming in 2010 and chief operating officer Norway in 2013. He has broad experience in aquaculture from Hydrotech-Gruppen, Hydro Seafood and Noraqua in Norway, Georgia Sea Farms in Canada, and Tassal in Tasmania, Australia. Mr Molvik was senior vice-president at Christiania Bank og Kreditkasse for several years. He holds an MSc from the University of Tromsø, Norway.

4:50 PM

Keynote interview

Naoko Ishii

Chief executive officer and chairperson, Global Environment Facility

Naoko Ishii

Chief executive officer and chairperson, Global Environment Facility

Naoko Ishii is an economist by training. Since taking the helm at the Global Environment Facility in 2012, Ms Ishii has steered the development and implementation of a new long-term strategy that addresses the underlying drivers of environmental degradation. She has put protecting the global commons at its center.

Ms Ishii was previously the deputy vice-minister of finance in Japan, and has also worked at the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. She has published numerous papers and several books, two of which were awarded the Suntory Prize (1990) and Okita Memorial Prize for International Development Research (2004). She is the inaugural recipient of the 2006 Enjoji Jiro Memorial Prize. Ms Ishii holds a BA and a PhD from the University of Tokyo.

5:15 PM

Close

6:30 PM

Opening cocktail reception

8:00 PM

Moonlight cinema: The Economist Films

OCEAN: TROUBLED WATERCan we protect our sea from ourselves?Worldwide thousands of sea species are under threat. How can we protect them, the ocean itself and the millions of people who depend on it for survival?

Daniel Franklin

Executive editor, The Economist

Daniel Franklin

Executive editor, The Economist

Daniel Franklin has been Executive Editor of The Economist since 2006 and Editor since 2003 of The Economist‘s annual publication, “The World in…”; which focuses on the year ahead. His book on long-term trends, “Megachange: The World in 2050”, was published in 2012. Mr Franklin joined The Economist in 1983 to write about Soviet and East European affairs. As the newspaper’s Europe Editor from 1986 to 1992 he covered the great European upheavals, from the collapse of communism to the signing of the Maastricht treaty. After a stint as Britain Editor he moved to the United States as Washington Bureau Chief, covering the first Clinton term. In 1997 he moved back to London as Editorial Director of The Economist Intelligence Unit. From 2006 to 2010 he was Editor-in-Chief of Economist.com. For the following four years he was Business Affairs Editor, running the paper’s coverage of business, finance, science and technology. He helps with new initiatives undertaken by The Economist Group. His special report on corporate social responsibility, "Just good business", was published in 2008.

March 8th

Thursday

8:00 AM

Networking coffee

9:15 AM

Welcome remarks and World Ocean Initiative announcement

Zanny Minton Beddoes

Editor-in-chief, The Economist

Zanny Minton Beddoes

Editor-in-chief, The Economist

Zanny Minton Beddoes is the editor-in-chief of The Economist, appointed in 2015. She was formerly business affairs editor overseeing the paper's

business, finance, economics, science and technology coverage. From 2007 to 2014, Zanny was economics editor, based in Washington, DC, where she led the paper's global economics coverage. She has written special reports on the world economy, Germany, Latin American finance, global finance

and Central Asia. Zanny joined The Economist in 1994 after two years as an economist at the International Monetary Fund. Previously, she worked

as an adviser to the Minister of Finance in Poland, as part of a small group headed by Professor Jeffrey Sachs of Harvard University. Zanny is

a frequent television and radio commentator on both sides of the Atlantic.

Charles Goddard

Executive director, World Ocean Initiative

Charles Goddard

Executive director, World Ocean Initiative

Charles Goddard leads the Economist Intelligence Unit’s editorial services in Asia-Pacific, including Corporate Network, a peer group for senior decision-makers of global businesses operating in the region. A journalist by background, he has worked across a range of publications and services at the Economist Intelligence Unit, including as author of the China Market Atlas series and director of its research divisions. A frequent traveller and speaker, he interacts regularly with business and government leaders across Asia. He is also executive director of The Economist’s World Ocean Summit, a global series of events on the sustainable use of our seas.

9:30 AM

Policy panel: Setting national ocean policy

National ocean policy is difficult to conceive – much less to implement – unless it is an integral part of a strategic economic vision, and unless it has a well-formulated economic rationale. How are policymakers approaching this challenge? And what is the role of finance ministries?

Eneida de León

Minister of housing, territorial planning and environment, Uruguay

Eneida de León

Minister of housing, territorial planning and environment, Uruguay

Eneida de León has served as the minister of housing, territorial planning and environment of Uruguay since 2015. Ms de León previously held the executive council presidency of the entertainment complex of the official broadcasting service (SODRE). She also co-ordinated several projects at the National Corporation for Development and held the position of national director of architecture at the Ministry of Transport and Public Works. Ms de León chaired the Society of Architects of Uruguay between 2012 and 2014, and she worked as a professor in the faculty of architecture at the University of the Republic for many years. Before holding public office, she worked in the private sector. Ms de León graduated from the University of the Republic.

Helen Ågren

Ambassador for the ocean, ministry of foreign affairs, Sweden

Helen Ågren

Ambassador for the ocean, ministry of foreign affairs, Sweden

Helen Ågren is Sweden’s ambassador for the ocean. She has served in five Swedish governments in the ministry for energy and the environment, and the ministry for sustainable development. Ms Ågren has also served in the prime minister’s office, where she worked for national and international sustainable development.

Ms Ågren's work focuses on strategic policy development and stakeholder co-operation, as well as research and innovation in the fields of consumption and production, green economy, climate mitigation and adaptation, and transport and international ocean affairs.

Terry Beech

Parliamentary secretary to the minister of fisheries, oceans and the coast guard, Canada

Terry Beech

Parliamentary secretary to the minister of fisheries, oceans and the coast guard, Canada

10:15 AM

Ocean futures

From the next generation, a preview of new thinking and ideas that will reshape the ocean economy.

Marissa Cuevas

Co-founder and chief executive officer, microTERRA

Marissa Cuevas

Co-founder and chief executive officer, microTERRA

Marissa Cuevas is the co-founder and chief executive officer of microTERRA, a startup which develops technology to harvest fertilizer from runoff. She is an energy engineer by training. She holds a bachelor’s degree from the Technical University of Berlin and a master’s degree in sustainable management from Columbia University.

In 2017 Ms Cuevas participated in the Global Solutions Program at Singularity University. Prior to this she worked for the German Cooperation Agency as an energy advisor and external senior consultant. In 2014 Ms Cuevas founded Kitcel, a startup focused on upcycling styrofoam waste and transforming it into wood varnish and coatings.

10:25 AM

Panel discussion: Public financing for the ocean economy

Public finance institutions, notably ministries, determine how governments allocate their spending, but they are often absent from conversations about the development and management of the “blue economy”. How do we increase public financing for the ocean economy, while ensuring that the linkages between finance ministries, and the ministries in charge of natural resources, are robust and clear?

Julie T Katzman

Julie T Katzman

Julie T Katzman is the executive vice-president and chief operating officer of the Inter-American Development Bank. Mrs Katzman joined the IDB in 2009 after a successful career as an investment banker, bringing together private-sector expertise with a lifelong interest in development.

Mrs Katzman manages the IDB’s overall operations, with 4,000 people in 28 offices. During her tenure, she has been responsible for increasing the organisation’s focus on results, increasing diversity and inclusion, and spurring the growth of new and innovative solutions. Leveraging her experience in investment banking, she has also played a significant role in crafting the IDB’s next generation of capital and risk policies and creating innovative structures to improve the IDB’s capital ratios. Mrs Katzman is a frequent speaker on many topics, including transparency, sustainable infrastructure, and gender and diversity.

Her work has been recognised through a number of awards, including Latin Trade magazine’s Top 25 Businesswomen in Latin America and Diversity Global magazine’s Top 10 Influential Women in Global Diversity. Mrs Katzman serves on the board of directors of the MacArthur Foundation, the International Center for Research on Women and the Global Banking Alliance for Women. She is on the board of advisers of the MIT Media Lab and the Instituto de Empresa in Madrid, and she is a member of the International Council on Women’s Business Leadership.

11:00 AM

Keynote interview

Erna Solberg

Prime minister, Norway

Erna Solberg

Prime minister, Norway

Erna Solberg was born in Bergen 24 February 1961. She holds a Cand. Mag. Degree (in Sociology, Political Science, Statistics and Economy) from the University of Bergen. Ms Solberg has represented the Conservative Party in the County of Hordaland at the Norwegian Parliament since 1989, and has been leader of the Conservative Party since 2004. Ms Solberg was minister of local government and regional development from 2001-2005 in Kjell Magne Bondevik's second government. Ms Solberg has held the position as prime minister since 2013. She began her second term as prime minister after the election in 2017.

11:20 AM

News from the Asamblea del Océano Pacífico

Outcomes from ministerial-level discussions running in parallel with the first day of the World Ocean Summit. The Asamblea del Océano Pacifico, a forum for Latin American countries, explores how to mobilise resources to rebuild, protect, conserve and sustainably manage the ocean.

José María Figueres

Founder, Ocean Unite; former president, Costa Rica

José María Figueres

Founder, Ocean Unite; former president, Costa Rica

Ricardo Lagos Weber

Senator, Chile

Ricardo Lagos Weber

Senator, Chile

Rafael Pacchiano

Minister of the environment, Mexico

Rafael Pacchiano

Minister of the environment, Mexico

11:50 AM

Ocean futures

From the next generation, a preview of new thinking and ideas that will reshape the ocean economy.

Jonsen Carmack

Co-founder and chief executive officer, SeaStatus Marine Weather

Jonsen Carmack

Co-founder and chief executive officer, SeaStatus Marine Weather

Jonsen Carmack is a graduate from the University of California, Santa Barbara and has built things as a product marketer and product manager. He is committed to making an impact on the future of the oceans and meeting people who can help make that happen.

12:00 PM

Networking break

1:00 PM

Presidential keynote: Mexico’s ocean economy

Enrique Peña Nieto

President, Mexico

Enrique Peña Nieto

President, Mexico

Enrique Peña Nieto served as a representative in the Congress of the state of Mexico, and later as governor of the state from 2005 to 2011. After concluding his term he was elected president of Mexico for the term 2012-2018. From the beginning of his administration he has proposed a series of reforms to break down legal and institutional barriers that were hindering Mexico’s development.

Mr Nieto holds a law degree from the Universidad Panamericana and an MBA from the Instituto Tecnológico de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey.

José Calzada Rovirosa

Secretary of agriculture, Mexico

José Calzada Rovirosa

Secretary of agriculture, Mexico

In August 2015, President Enrique Peña Nieto appointed Jose Calzada as secretary of agriculture, livestock, rural development, fisheries and food. As secretary of agriculture, Mr. Calzada oversees Mexico’s agrifood sector policies and programs, with a focus on strengthening productivity and output growth.

In 2006, Mr. Calzada won a seat in Mexico’s Senate Chamber, serving there until 2009, when he won the governorship election of this home state of Queretaro. Governor Calzada won recognition as the best evaluated among his peers for three consecutive years. He also won recognition by implementing the social program ‘Soluciones’, which registered the country’s best performance among states in reducing poverty rates and alleviating malnutrition, especially among young children.

Mr. Calzada earned a Bachelor’s degree and a Master’s diploma in Business Administration. He also obtained a diploma in Metropolitan Government and Regional Administration. Currently, he is PhD candidate for a doctoral degree in Economic Sciences from the Autonomous University of Queretaro.

Carlos Manuel Joaquín González

Governor, Quintana Roo

Carlos Manuel Joaquín González

Governor, Quintana Roo

1:40 PM

Networking lunch

2:59 PM

Afternoon working streams

Delegates will be able to choose between focused workshops on three crucial challenges facing the ocean.

3:00 PM

STREAM ONE: SUSTAINABLE SEAFOOD (Riviera 1)

Panel discussion: Selling sustainable seafood

Time: 3.00 pm

A small group of forward-thinking retailers are leading the way on sourcing sustainable seafood. More are considering the move as the risks of business as usual, of ensuring adequate fish stocks particularly, are increasingly apparent, and as consumers begin to make their wishes heard. The transition is by no means easy. An Economist Events Roundtable in January 2017 explored how the transition to sustainable seafood sourcing might take hold in a market like Mexico. Among the challenges: building a coordinated response across the supply chain.

Mario Aguilar, national commissioner of aquaculture and fisheries, Mexico

Panel discussion: The investment conundrum

Time: 3.45 pm

Forging a path to sustainable fisheries, particularly in low- and middle-income countries, and finding the necessary investment, has involved great effort by foundations, NGOs, development institutions and impact investors. Although banks in countries such as Australia routinely invest in fisheries, scaling up investments in sustainable fisheries in countries as diverse as Mexico and Indonesia remains difficult, despite several successful pilot strategies and projects. Taking stock, which approaches work best? Should others also be considered?

John Tobin-de la Puente, professor of practice of corporate sustainability, Atkinson Center for a Sustainable Future, Cornell University

At World Ocean Summit in 2017, a group of foundations, NGOs and impact investors agreed to create guidelines for investing in sustainable fisheries. With a dearth of investible projects, will these help to frame the opportunity?

Citlali Gomez

President of the board, COMEPESCA

Citlali Gomez

President of the board, COMEPESCA

Citlali Gomez is a biologist who specialises in rural aquaculture. She is the chief executive officer of Neminatura, family-owned business specialising in raising rainbow trout and bullfrog, and is also the president of the board of Consejo Mexicano de Promoción de los Productos Pesqueros y Acuícolas (COMEPESCA).

Suseno Sukoyono

Suseno Sukoyono

Suseno Sukoyono is the minister’s advisor in Indonesia’s ministry of marine affairs and fisheries. From 2010 to 2013 Mr Sukoyono served as executive chair of the Coral Triangle Initiative for Coral Reefs, Fisheries, and Food Security (CTI-CFF), a multilateral partnership of six countries in Southeast Asia and the Pacific region which addresses the urgent threats to the coastal and marine resources in the Coral Triangle. He was also designated Indonesia’s special envoy for marine environment affairs at the second session of the United Nations Environment Assembly. Under his leadership, the Indonesia-sponsored Resolution on coral reef management (EA/2/12), which called on UN member states to manage their coral reefs in a sustainable manner, was adopted on 27 May 2016.

Rupert Howes

Chief executive officer, Marine Stewardship Council

Rupert Howes

Chief executive officer, Marine Stewardship Council

Rupert Howes has served as the chief executive officer of the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) since October 2004. The MSC contributes to the health of the world’s oceans by recognizing and rewarding sustainable fishing practices, influencing the choices people make when buying seafood, and working with conservation and industry partners to make the global seafood market environmentally sustainable.

Prior to this Mr Howes was director of the sustainable economy programme at Forum for the Future, an influential UK-based sustainable development organization that partners with businesses, capital markets, governments, and others to accelerate the transition to a more sustainable way of life. Mr Howes has also been a senior research fellow at the Science Policy Research Unit of the University of Sussex, and a research officer at the International Institute for Environment and Development.

Mario Aguilar

National commissioner of aquaculture and fisheries, Mexico

Mario Aguilar

National commissioner of aquaculture and fisheries, Mexico

Mario Aguilar is the national commissioner for aquaculture and fisheries at the ministry of agriculture, livestock rural development fisheries and food of Mexico. He designs and implements the national policy for sustainable management of fisheries and aquatic resources, as well as the development and promotion of fisheries and aquaculture activities.

Mr Aguilar is responsible for monitoring the relevant policy and international affairs of which Mexico is a part. He has also served as fishing affairs minister at the Mexican embassy in Washington, DC; minister counselor for environment, social development and fisheries; and alternate representative for legal affairs in Mexico's mission at the Organization of the American States in Washington, DC. He has also represented Mexico in international forums.

John Tobin-de la Puente

Professor of practice of corporate sustainability, Atkinson Center for a Sustainable Future, Cornell University

John Tobin-de la Puente

Professor of practice of corporate sustainability, Atkinson Center for a Sustainable Future, Cornell University

Professor Tobin is an environmental biologist and attorney by training. He has over two decades of private sector experience, having practiced corporate law and worked in the international finance industry for most of his career. His recent professional experience has been focused on corporate sustainability, including the management of environmental, social, and reputational risks; stakeholder engagement and communications; business ethics; sustainability strategy; and the development of financial products and services that aim to address broad societal challenges. In addition, Professor Tobin has substantial leadership and governance experience in not-for-profit entities at the board level, particularly in the areas of environment, science, and education. Professor Tobin has a PhD in tropical ecology from Harvard University’s Museum of Comparative Zoology, as well as a JD from Harvard Law School. Prior to joining Cornell University, he was managing director and global head of sustainability at Credit Suisse.

Martin Callow

Martin Callow

Martin Callow is chief executive officer of Seychelles’ Conservation and Climate Adaptation Trust (SeyCCAT). A marine conservationist by training, Mr Callow has spent a large part of his career working with small islands and coastal developing states, including Fiji, Seychelles, and Myanmar. He was appointed chief executive officer of SeyCCAT in 2017, a responsibility that sees him leading the public-private fund that was structured by the Government of Seychelles and The Nature Conservancy. Mr Callow is working with partners to develop and support other mechanisms to boost financial flows to Seychelles' blue economy – including a Blue Enterprise Fund, and Seychelles US15m Blue Bond, which is being finalised between the Government of Seychelles and the World Bank’s SWIOFish3 project team and partners.

Darian McBain

Global director of sustainable development, Thai Union

Darian McBain

Global director of sustainable development, Thai Union

Darian McBain is the global director of sustainable development for Thai Union, one of the world’s largest seafood processors. She is an engineer, scientist and science communicator with a focus on sustainable supply chains. Ms McBain has spent her career working with business, government and non-governmental organisations on managing the environmental and social impacts and risks of business activities and contributing to a more sustainable society. She is a member of the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) Stakeholder Advisory Council, a board member of the Global Seafood Sustainability Initiative, a founding member of the Seafood Business for Ocean Stewardship (SEABos) initiative and the business representative for Thailand on the Bali Process Government and Business Forum on human trafficking. Ms McBain earned her PhD from the University of Sydney. She holds an MSc in business strategy, politics and environment from the University of London, and a BEng (environmental) from the University of New South Wales.

Chumnarn Pongsri

Deputy director-general of fisheries, Thailand

Chumnarn Pongsri

Deputy director-general of fisheries, Thailand

Chumnarn Pongsri is the deputy director-general of the department of fisheries, ministry of agriculture and cooperatives, Thailand. He concurrently holds a key position as the head of a Thai delegation to develop and strengthen fisheries’ cooperation against illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing regionally and globally.

Prior to this assignment, from 2009 to 2015 Mr Pongsri was the secretary-general of the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center (SEAFDEC), a regional body which facilitates the transfer of new technologies and research for rational and sustainable use of resources, enhances the capability of fisheries to address emerging international issues, and helps Southeast Asia gain greater access to international trade.

Mr Pongsri has also served as the director of the environment division of the Mekong River Commission (MRC) Secretariat and a member of the board of advisors for the Greater Mekong Sub-region Academic Research Network (GMSARN). Throughout his professional life, Mr Pongsri has devoted himself to poverty alleviation in small-scale communities through sustainable development, and promoting food security and safety along the supply chain.

Mr Pongsri received a PhD from the University of Wales, Swansea, in 1994. He holds a master’s degree in aquaculture from the Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand and a bachelor’s degree in fisheries from Kasetsart University, Thailand.

Francisco Saraiva Gomes

Chief executive officer, Pontos Aqua Holdings

Francisco Saraiva Gomes

Chief executive officer, Pontos Aqua Holdings

Francisco Saraiva Gomes founded and leads Pontos Aqua, a unique ecosystem of financing and de-risking for the global aquaculture industry. Pontos is formed by Pontos Aqua Holdings, an investment company that provides equity and specialty finance capital for established companies across the global aquaculture industry, and Pontos Aqua, a strategic and operational de-risking firm that seeks higher-risk opportunities. Mr Gomes has managed businesses and operations across the globe, spanning health and nutrition, engineering, industrial farming, processing and distribution, and policymaking. He was on the board of the World Aquaculture Society and was an adviser for the EU Economic and Social Committee. Mr Gomes is an alumnus of Auburn University and Harvard Business School.

Amanda Leland

Senior vice-president, oceans, Environmental Defense Fund

Amanda Leland

Senior vice-president, oceans, Environmental Defense Fund

Amanda Leland is senior vice-president for Environmental Defense Fund Oceans. She leads a diverse team of scientists, lawyers, and advocates for healthy and abundant oceans.

Ms Leland develops and implements strategies to develop productive and profitable fisheries, and her team is building on its past progress in U.S. and international fishing to deliver a global agenda that will result in more fish in the water, more food on the plate, and more prosperous communities.

Under Mr Leland’s leadership, the Oceans Program has catalyzed reforms and advanced tangible results for people and the oceans in nine countries in North and Central America, Europe, and Southeast Asia.

Torsten Thiele

Founder and managing partner, Global Ocean Trust

Torsten Thiele

Founder and managing partner, Global Ocean Trust

Torsten Thiele is an expert in ocean finance, promoting sustainable marine governance based on innovative solutions. As senior adviser to the IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature) Blue Natural Capital Finance Facility, lead on the London School of Economics IGA Blue Finance Initiative and research associate at the Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies, he contributes to a wide range of ocean efforts, drawing on his many years of experience in project and infrastructure finance with major banks. Mr Thiele holds graduate degrees from Bonn, Harvard and Cambridge Universities. He speaks and publishes regularly on ocean issues.

Manuel Bueno

Fund director, Meloy Fund

Manuel Bueno

Fund director, Meloy Fund

As senior director for sustainable markets and finance, Manuel Bueno helps manage and develop Rare’s global and regional market interventions and innovative financial mechanisms to infuse capital into the company’s sustainable-markets work. He is also a founding fund partner and investment committee member at the Meloy Fund, a coastal fisheries impact-investing fund in Indonesia and the Philippines. Mr Bueno has a strong background in impact-investing transactions across a wide range of sectors such as agribusiness, manufacturing and financial institutions in Latin America, Asia and Africa.

Sebastian Nicholls

Founder and chief executive officer, SeaBlue Consulting

Sebastian Nicholls

Founder and chief executive officer, SeaBlue Consulting

Sebastian Nicholls is a young ocean conservation leader. His petitions advocating for the expansion of MPAs and for a standalone Sustainable Development Goal on oceans were delivered to the White House and UN in 2014. Mr Nicholls has also planned four global student ocean conservation conferences at Georgetown University from 2014-2017. Mr Nicholls was the main student organizer of the first Our Ocean Youth Summit, where he interviewed the science advisor to President Obama and created an ocean action map to facilitate youth collaboration on ocean solutions.

3:00 PM

STREAM TWO: POLLUTION AND PLASTICS (Mimosa 1)

Panel discussion: Scaling up waste management in cities

Time: 3.00 pm

Indonesia’s commitment to reducing plastics entering the ocean by 70% by 2025 seeks to scale up the capacity of cities to collect and manage waste. A recent study suggests that cities on just 10 of the world’s major rivers contribute much of the plastic entering the ocean. Cash-strapped cities in developing countries are the focus of several new initiatives to improve solid waste management. Will this approach have the desired impact? Where is the money coming from?

David Clark, vice-president for sustainability, Amcor

Rob Kaplan, managing director, Closed Loop Partners

Richard Northcote, chief sustainability officer, Covestro

Lisa Emelia Svensson, director for ocean, UN Environment

Panel discussion: Auditing plastic—knowing the business risks

Time: 3.45 pm

The Plastic Disclosure Project offers a useful and straightforward tool for businesses to map and understand their plastic footprint.

Doug Woodring, founder and managing director, Ocean Recovery Alliance

Panel discussion: Business-led solutions to the plastics dilemma

Time: 4.00 pm

A small but growing number of businesses are rethinking the way they use plastics. Reducing and eliminating plastics across operations and supply chains, sourcing recovered or recycled plastic, and plastic offsetting are among the strategies and tools firms like Dell (a computer maker), Iceland (a supermarket), and Coca-Cola (a beverage manufacturer) are deploying. What is driving this trend, and what’s in it for businesses? Can more be persuaded to join?

Much of the conversation on plastics is about reducing usage, and how to make them better. The emerging circular economy paradigm wants to turn this on its head, re-engineering the world of products and packaging, often with materials that are more readily recoverable and reusable. Quite a few companies are thinking deeply about what this entails, and how they see the circular economy working with each of the product and packaging materials they use. Some are even working in materials such as metal as an explicit rejection of single-use plastics. Are closed-loop systems commercially viable? How far off are they?

Renault de Freitas Castro, executive president, Abralatas

Ariel Booker, co-founder, CanO Water

Gabe Wing, director of safety and sustainability, Herman Miller

Nina Goodrich, director, Sustainable Packaging Coalition

David Clark

Vice-president, sustainability, Amcor

David Clark

Vice-president, sustainability, Amcor

David Clark leads Amcor’s sustainability programmes and is closely involved with integrating sustainable design and social responsibility into Amcor’s product development and innovation processes. This includes leading Amcor to achieve a recently announced pledge that by 2025 all of its products will be designed to be recyclable or reused and that the company will increase the use of recycled content and participate in increasing the collection, processing and use of recycled containers.

Mr Clark is also chairman of the Plastic Recycling Corporation of California, serves on the external advisory board of the Erb Institute for Global Sustainable Enterprise at the University of Michigan, and is an Aspen Institute First Movers Fellow.

He holds a BS in physics from the University of Michigan and an MBA from Pepperdine University.

Rob Kaplan

Managing director, Closed Loop Partners

Rob Kaplan

Managing director, Closed Loop Partners

Richard Northcote

Chief sustainability officer, Covestro

Richard Northcote

Chief sustainability officer, Covestro

Richard Northcote is Chief Sustainability Officer at Covestro, a global leader in high performance polymers. He is a passionate advocate of the triple-bottom line and the UNGC Sustainable Development Goals as strategic tools for business and economic growth. Prior to taking this role, Richard has worked in civil engineering, journalism and the chemical sector in a number of European countries, the Middle East and Asia.

Richard sits on the Steering Committee of the Oxford University Business Economics Programme and on the Advisory Boards of Tongji University Sustainability Development Council and Leeds University Business School's Research and Innovation Programme.

Lisa Emelia Svensson

Director for Ocean, United Nations Environment

Lisa Emelia Svensson

Director for Ocean, United Nations Environment

Doug Woodring

Founder and managing director, Ocean Recovery Alliance

Doug Woodring

Founder and managing director, Ocean Recovery Alliance

Alexis Haass

Director of sustainability, adidas

Alexis Haass

Director of sustainability, adidas

Alexis Haass heads adidas brand’s sustainability program from its global headquarters in Herzogenaurach, Germany. Her responsibilities include directing adidas' sustainability strategy, developing new sustainable innovations and business models, and coordinating sustainable product creation across adidas’ business units and global creation centers. Ms Haass’ previous work revolved around sustainable product development and clean technology with companies such as IDEO, P&G, and Transfair USA. Ms Haass has an MBA in marketing, and a MS in sustainable systems from the University of Michigan.

Ben Jordan

Senior director, environmental policy, The Coca-Cola Company

Ben Jordan

Senior director, environmental policy, The Coca-Cola Company

Ben Jordan works as senior director of environmental policy for the Coca-Cola Company. In over 20 years at Coca-Cola, Mr Jordan has worked in both its North American and its global organisations, travelling in over 35 countries. He has held roles focused on both internal operational issues and relationship-building with key stakeholders. In his current role, he has responsibilities for driving sustainability programmes in climate, packaging and agriculture.

Mr Jordan has participated actively in Coca-Cola’s involvement with a number of leading environmental organisations, including the Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Economies (CERES), World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and The Nature Conservancy. Currently, he sits on the member’s council of Bonsucro (the Better Sugarcane Initiative), the board of trustees of The Nature Conservancy in Georgia and the advisory board of Chattahoochee Riverkeeper. He is a participant in the World Economic Forum’s Food Security and Agriculture Partners group and the Consumer Goods Forum Pulp and Paper Working Group.

Mr Jordan has bachelor's and master's degrees from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and serves as an educational counsellor for MIT, interviewing prospective undergraduate students from the Atlanta area. He has a PhD in public policy (environmental policy specialty) from Georgia Tech, where he participates on an arts advisory board. He is an adjunct instructor at Emory University and a reviewer for the Journal of Industrial Ecology. He served as a founding member of the City of Decatur Environmental Sustainability Board, helping drive efforts in one of metro Atlanta’s most progressive municipalities.

David Lear

Vice-president, sustainability, Dell

David Lear

Vice-president, sustainability, Dell

David Lear serves as the vice-president of Dell’s sustainability programs, and works to create long-term stakeholder value and opportunities by integrating economic, social, and environmental responsibility into Dell’s core business strategies. His team engages key stakeholders including customers, NGOs, regulators, industry groups, and agencies to collaborate on global policy and standards development. This includes managing strategic giving and community partnerships that demonstrate the enabling power of technology to drive both business and sustainability outcomes.

Mr Lear joined Dell in 2006 as director of product safety and environmental affairs, responsible for the delivery of Dell global product compliance programs. Previously, Mr Lear served in various roles in design and manufacturing in the test and measurement industry, where he specialised in the development of product technologies.

Mr Lear holds a BS in Chemistry and Biology from Missouri State University, and a MBA from the University of Indianapolis.

Frederic Michel

Group director, Sky Ocean Ventures, Sky plc

Frederic Michel

Group director, Sky Ocean Ventures, Sky plc

Erin Simon

Director, sustainability research and development, WWF US

Erin Simon

Director, sustainability research and development, WWF US

Renault Castro

Chief executive officer, Abralatas

Renault Castro

Chief executive officer, Abralatas

Renault Castro is a graduate in economics and holds a MSc degree from the University of Oxford. He was a Brazilian government official for 23 years until 1998. His last post in the government was a two-year term as commissioner of the Brazilian antitrust agency. After eight years as an antitrust private consultant, he assumed the role of chief executive officer of Abralatas in 2006

Ariel Booker

Co-founder, CanO Water

Ariel Booker

Co-founder, CanO Water

Ariel Booker is co-founder of CanO Water. Mr Booker left his job in finance to focus on CanO Water as he saw a gap in the market and was keen to educate people on the benefits of using aluminium instead of plastic. The founders of CanO Water came up with the idea for a canned water product as aluminium is the most recyclable material on the planet. The message is simple: recycle your can and it will come back as another.

Gabe Wing

Director of safety and sustainability, Herman Miller

Gabe Wing

Director of safety and sustainability, Herman Miller

Nina Goodrich

Nina Goodrich

Nina Goodrich is director of the Sustainable Packaging Coalition and executive director of GreenBlue. GreenBlue is dedicated to researching and promoting the principles of sustainable materials management that seek to help industry use materials wisely, promote material health and recover more. She believes in the power of the circular economy to provide growth without waste.

Ms Goodrich came to GreenBlue with an industry and consultancy background in research and development (R&D) management, innovation and sustainability strategy. She believes that innovation and sustainability are linked as key drivers for our future. She has held leadership positions in R&D with Alcan Packaging, Amcor, the Guelph Food Technology Centre and Magic Pantry Foods. She has worked to develop a value proposition for sustainability and to share it with all who will listen.

Ms Goodrich has done graduate work in technology management and holds a BA in molecular biology from Wellesley College. Regarded as a thought leader in the field, she speaks and writes frequently on the convergence of sustainability, innovation and technology.

3:00 PM

STREAM THREE: CLIMATE CHANGE (Mimosa 2)

Panel discussion: Nationally determined contributions (NDCs)

Time: 3.00 pm

Nationally determined contributions (NDCs) are a country’s commitments under the Paris Agreement to manage climate change. Around 70% of NDCs include the ocean, which seems encouraging. Yet, a Scripps Institution of Oceanography study notes that there is wide variation in what countries understand to be important about the relationship between climate change and the ocean. Naturally, many focus on impact, most commonly sea-level rise; but few appear to appreciate the role of oceans in providing solutions, or how this might be reflected in NDCs. There is a yawning gap to fill. How can this be done?

In this short presentation, we will hear the experiences of a young scientist, who will give us real-life examples of the areas of the ocean that have been hit hardest by climate change over the past couple of years.

Timothy Gordon, marine biologist, University of Exeter

Panel discussion: Preventing the unthinkable—saving coral reefs

Time: 4.00 pm

Climate change and human pressures are pushing coral reefs into precipitous decline—many could disappear within decades. This would be an unthinkable tragedy, pulling the life support from under millions of species and billions of dollars in food and tourism income, and coastal protection. Several collaborations aim to tackle this challenge at scale—among them 50 Reefs and Coral Reef Rescue. But in this International Year of the Reef big questions remain: where should the work focus, and what solutions will have the biggest impact?

Sam Teicher, founder, Coral Vita

James Deutsch, director, biodiversity, Paul G. Allen Philanthropies

Daria Siciliano, researcher, University of California, Santa Cruz; lead scientist, the Ocean Foundation

A section of the Mesoamerican Reef, along with a beach on Mexico's Yucatán peninsula, is soon to be insured for the natural protection it provides coastal communities and economies from the impact of storms, now increasingly frequent as a result of climate change. The insurance and hospitality sectors have come together with government, scientists and civil society to make this happen. Insuring a natural asset for its protective, biodiversity and tourism services is innovative, and potentially lucrative. But where is this best done? Is it replicable?

Dagmar Nelissen

Senior researcher and consultant, CE Delft

Dagmar Nelissen

Senior researcher and consultant, CE Delft

Dagmar Nelissen, an economist, works as a senior researcher and consultant for CE Delft, an independent environmental research and consultancy organisation located in the Netherlands. For more than ten years, Ms Nelissen has been working in the field of climate protection in the maritime shipping sector, specialising in technical and operation (political) measures to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions. In this area, she has been involved in a large number of projects commissioned by a variety of clients, including the International Maritime Organisation, the European Commission, national ministries and environmental non-governmental organisations.

Nelson Zambrano

Undersecretary of coastal marine affairs, Ecuador

Nelson Zambrano

Undersecretary of coastal marine affairs, Ecuador

Mark Geilenkirchen

Chief executive officer, SOHAR Port and Freezone

Mark Geilenkirchen

Chief executive officer, SOHAR Port and Freezone

After receiving his bachelor’s degree in logistics from the Maritime Institute De Ruyters in the Netherlands, Mark Geilenkirchen set up and managed HT Research from 1991 to 2001, an international consultancy focusing on logistics and quality. In 2002, he returned to De Ruyters as a lecturer, where he created a specialised business faculty for logistics and established many working relationships with other leading universities. In 2006, Mr Geilenkirchen joined ABN AMRO as vice-president, where he helped lead the company through the global financial crisis. From 2010 to 2014 Mr Geilenkirchen was appointed chief executive officer and chief compliance officer of APM Terminals at Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, where he was responsible for attracting significant Chinese investments and returning the loss-making port to profit. Mr Geilenkirchen joined SOHAR Port and Freezone as chief executive officer in July 2016.

Timothy Gordon

Marine biologist, University of Exeter

Timothy Gordon

Marine biologist, University of Exeter

Tim Gordon is a marine biologist from the University of Exeter (UK) and the Australian Institute of Marine Science. His research focuses on the impact of climate change on the oceans, and has recently taken him to some of the most severely degraded ecosystems in the world. Working in the Central Arctic Ocean and on the Great Barrier Reef, he has witnessed and recorded first-hand the devastating impacts of climate change. Collaborating with teams of scientists from around the world, he aims to further understand the challenges and opportunities presented by the state of our marine ecosystems today. Even amidst melting ice caps and bleached corals, he believes there is hope for the future of the oceans.

Sam Teicher

Founder and chief reef officer, Coral Vita

Sam Teicher

Founder and chief reef officer, Coral Vita

Sam Teicher co-founded Coral Vita, a company that grows corals to restore dying reefs. It uses breakthrough methods to grow corals in months instead of decades, improve their resiliency to climate change and scale up restoration to help counter global reef degradation. Through large-scale restoration, Coral Vita works to protect the prosperity and health of communities, nations and industries that rely upon reefs’ valuable benefits.

Mr Teicher previously helped launch a UN-funded coral-farming project at ELI Africa in partnership with the Mauritius Oceanography Institute, and worked to implement climate resiliency initiatives at the White House Council on Environmental Quality and for the Global Island Partnership.

He is on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list, is an Echoing Green Climate Fellow and created a Fast Company World Changing Idea. Mr Teicher received his master’s degree from Yale, and has been in love with reefs since childhood.

James Deutsch

Director, biodiversity Paul G. Allen Philanthropies

James Deutsch

Director, biodiversity Paul G. Allen Philanthropies

JamesDeutsch is a global leader in conservation strategy. He spent the past five months interviewing over 140 global experts on coral reef conservation to establish an expert consensus on the dimensions of the crisis facing coral reefs as well as strategies for ensuring their survival. Mr Deutsch’s appointments have included Lecturer in Conservation Biology at Imperial College, London, vice-president of conservation strategy at the Wildlife Conservation Society, and director of biodiversity at Paul G. Allen Philanthropies. His work on corals has included detailed investigation into potential ways to promote coral resilience; ways to scale up restoration, global mapping and monitoring; and securing popular, policy, and financial support. Paul G. Allen Philanthropies currently supports 50 Reefs and human assisted evolution research at the University of Hawaii and Australia Institute for Marine Sciences.

Daria Siciliano

Researcher, University of California Santa Cruz; lead scientist, Ocean Foundation

Daria Siciliano

Researcher, University of California Santa Cruz; lead scientist, Ocean Foundation

Daria Siciliano is a coral reef ecologist at the Institute of Marine Sciences of the University of California, Santa Cruz. For the past five years Ms Siciliano has focused on Cuba’s coral reefs with the Cuba Marine Research and Conservation Programme of The Ocean Foundation, planning and overseeing multi-institutional expeditions to Cuba’s southern and north-western coral reef chains. She has been focusing on the effects of climate change, nutrient run-off and invasive species on these reefs, working closely with Cuban partners and overcoming the challenges of establishing collaborative projects between countries with strong ecological ties, despite tenuous diplomatic ones. She has also worked extensively in the Asia-Pacific region (primarily the north-west Hawaiian Islands, the Marshall Islands, the Line Islands, Fiji and Papua New Guinea), with an emphasis on assessing reef accretion and environmental change on Pacific atolls, using a combination of in situ biodiversity surveys, geochemical proxies and benthic habitat mapping.

Ove Hoegh-Guldberg

Director, The Global Change Institute, University of Queensland

Ove Hoegh-Guldberg

Director, The Global Change Institute, University of Queensland

A leading contributor to the scientific literature on climate change, Ove Hoegh-Guldberg has travelled from Antarctica to the tropics to understand the impacts of climate change on the ocean, and to communicate the seriousness of its consequences. As a result, he has worked on numerous film projects with filmmakers such as Sir David Attenborough, Richard Smith and Jeff Orlowski (Chasing Coral). Mr Hoegh-Guldberg was the co-ordinating lead author for the “Oceans” chapter for the Fifth Assessment Report of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The fortunate recipient of several awards for his work, he has also received a Eureka Prize, Australian Research Council Laureate Fellowship and Queensland Premier’s Fellowship, as well as the 2014 Prince Albert II Award for Climate Change and the 2016 Banksia International Award.

Isabel Studer

Isabel Studer

Isabel Studer is currently the Executive Director of The Nature Conservancy (TNC) for Mexico and Northern Central America. Her professional career has spanned across the public and academic sectors. Prior to being appointed to lead TNC, Ms Studer was the general director of the
international economic cooperation of the Mexican Agency for International Development. She has served as the general deputy director for Canada in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and as general director for North America in the Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources in
Mexico. She founded and directed the Global Institute for Sustainability at Monterrey Tech.

Ms Studer is a member of the advisory board of the French Development Agency in Mexico, the board of directors for the World Environment Centre and the Sustainability Expert Advisory Council of Dow Chemical. She holds a master’s degree and PhD in international relations from Johns Hopkins University.

Martyn Parker

Chairman, global partnership, Swiss Re

Martyn Parker

Chairman, global partnership, Swiss Re

Martyn Parker, chairman of global partnerships, is a member of the group management board. He leads Swiss Re’s business activities with governments and development and non-governmental organisations worldwide.

Previously he was regional president, Asia, and a member of Swiss Re's executive committee. From his Hong Kong base, he oversaw Swiss Re's rapidly expanding Asia-Pacific business. Earlier responsibilities included being chief executive officer of Swiss Re Life and Health UK; Life and Health executive board member responsible for Africa, the Middle East, Israel and the Indian subcontinent, based in South Africa; and working in Singapore as the life representative for South-east Asia.

John Haley

Chief executive officer, Willis Towers Watson

John Haley

Chief executive officer, Willis Towers Watson

John Haley is the CEO of Willis Towers Watson. He joined the company in 1977. Throughout his career he has served in a variety of roles, including consulting actuary to several of the company’s largest clients, manager of the Washington, DC, consulting office and leader of the global retirement practice. Mr Haley was named CEO in 1998. Under his leadership, the company has completed three historic mergers, in 2005, 2010 and 2016, which formed present-day Willis Towers Watson.

Mr Haley also serves on the board of directors of the US-China Business Council and MAXIMUS, and he formerly served as a director of Hudson Global. He is a fellow of both the Society of Actuaries and the Conference of Consulting Actuaries, and has served as a trustee of The Actuarial Foundation.

He has a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Rutgers College and received a fellowship for two years of study at the Graduate School of Mathematics at Yale University.

Paul Jardine

Executive vice-president and chief experience officer, XL Catlin

Paul Jardine

Executive vice-president and chief experience officer, XL Catlin

As executive vice-president and chief experience officer, Paul Jardine has responsibility for XL Group’s communications and marketing function, claims, and distribution strategy. Mr Jardine joined Catlin in 2001 with responsibility for the development of new financial products. He was appointed chief executive of the Catlin Syndicate in 2003 and chief operating officer of Catlin in 2004.

Mr Jardine was a partner at Coopers & Lybrand, where he was involved almost exclusively with issues dealing with Lloyd’s and the London insurance market. He began his career with Prudential Assurance Company as an actuarial student and subsequently as an actuary. He is a fellow of the Institute of Actuaries. Mr Jardine was chairman of the Lloyd’s Market Association from 2007 to 2010 and was a member of the Council of Lloyd’s and deputy chairman of Lloyd’s from 2008 to 2017.

5:30 PM

Close

6:30 PM

Networking cocktails

7:30 PM

Gala dinner: Welcome remarks

Zanny Minton Beddoes

Editor-in-chief, The Economist

Zanny Minton Beddoes

Editor-in-chief, The Economist

Zanny Minton Beddoes is the editor-in-chief of The Economist, appointed in 2015. She was formerly business affairs editor overseeing the paper's

business, finance, economics, science and technology coverage. From 2007 to 2014, Zanny was economics editor, based in Washington, DC, where she led the paper's global economics coverage. She has written special reports on the world economy, Germany, Latin American finance, global finance

and Central Asia. Zanny joined The Economist in 1994 after two years as an economist at the International Monetary Fund. Previously, she worked

as an adviser to the Minister of Finance in Poland, as part of a small group headed by Professor Jeffrey Sachs of Harvard University. Zanny is

a frequent television and radio commentator on both sides of the Atlantic.

7:40 PM

An ocean conversation part I

Catherine McKenna

Minister of environment and climate change, Canada

Catherine McKenna

Minister of environment and climate change, Canada

Sylvia Earle

President and chairman, Mission Blue

Sylvia Earle

President and chairman, Mission Blue

8:10 PM

Dinner

9:30 PM

An ocean conversation part II

A discussion between The Economist and a leading expert on the ocean.

Susan Shaw

Susan Shaw

Susan Shaw is an American environmental health scientist, explorer, author, and ocean conservationist. She is founder and director of the Marine & Environmental Research Institute, and adjunct professor at the University at Albany’s School of Public Health. Ms Shaw is a globally recognized expert on the health effects of environmental chemical exposure. Over three decades, her research has fuelled public policy nationally and globally. Her 1983 book OverExposure, written with landscape photographer Ansel Adams, exposed the health hazards of photographic chemicals.

An outspoken voice on ocean pollution, Ms Shaw dove into the 2010 BP oil spill and influenced the national debate on the dangers of dispersant chemicals. She appeared in several films on the Gulf disaster, including Animal Planet’s Black Tide: Voices of the Gulf and Green Planet’s The Big Fix.Currently, Ms Shaw leads an international team addressing the compound threat of pollution and climate change across three oceans.

Alexandra Cousteau

Senior advisor, Oceana

Alexandra Cousteau

Senior advisor, Oceana

Roz Savage

Senior fellow, Jackson Institute for Global Affairs, Yale University

Roz Savage

Senior fellow, Jackson Institute for Global Affairs, Yale University

Roz Savage writes, speaks and lectures on sustainability, courage, resilience and change. She is the first (and so far only) woman to row solo across the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. She holds four Guinness World Records, and was appointed a member of the Order of the British Empire for services to fundraising and the environment.
Formerly a management consultant, Ms Savage was inspired to brave the oceans when she realised that we are all capable of much more than we tend to believe we are, and we need to make some changes if we're going to live healthy lives on a thriving planet. She has used her voyages to expand her own limits, and to promote sustainable living.

10:00 PM

Close

March 9th

Friday

8:00 AM

Networking coffee

8:45 AM

Welcome remarks

Zanny Minton Beddoes

Editor-in-chief, The Economist

Zanny Minton Beddoes

Editor-in-chief, The Economist

Zanny Minton Beddoes is the editor-in-chief of The Economist, appointed in 2015. She was formerly business affairs editor overseeing the paper's

business, finance, economics, science and technology coverage. From 2007 to 2014, Zanny was economics editor, based in Washington, DC, where she led the paper's global economics coverage. She has written special reports on the world economy, Germany, Latin American finance, global finance

and Central Asia. Zanny joined The Economist in 1994 after two years as an economist at the International Monetary Fund. Previously, she worked

as an adviser to the Minister of Finance in Poland, as part of a small group headed by Professor Jeffrey Sachs of Harvard University. Zanny is

a frequent television and radio commentator on both sides of the Atlantic.

8:50 AM

Panel discussion: The ocean—a new frontier of climate action?

The COP23 presidency, led by Fiji, launched the Ocean Pathway in Bonn in 2017 to try and fast-track the ocean into the UNFCCC process—and draw under one roof other similar efforts to persuade parties involved in the Paris Agreement to recognise the important relationship between the ocean and climate change. The absence of the ocean from climate deliberations is telling in many ways, and leaves a dangerous hole in the fight against global warming. Can an already taxed COP process rise to this challenge? What hope is there for linking the ocean to global climate actions?

Catherine McKenna

Minister of environment and climate change, Canada

Catherine McKenna

Minister of environment and climate change, Canada

Andrew Steer

President and chief executive officer, World Resources Institute

Andrew Steer

President and chief executive officer, World Resources Institute

Andrew Steer is president and chief executive officer of the World Resources Institute (WRI), an international “research-into-action” organization that works in more than 50 countries, addressing urgent global challenges at the intersection of economic development and the natural environment. WRI’s goal is to advance economic, social, and political options that will shift behavior and systems away from low-efficiency, high-polluting, and resource-depleting patterns towards sustainable, efficient and more prosperous paths.

Mr Steer has held senior positions at the World Bank, which included director for Indonesia and Vietnam, director of environment, and special envoy for climate change. Mr Steer has also worked in the British government, where he was director general at the UK Department for International Development. He has a PhD in economics.

9:30 AM

Keynote discussion: Taking stock from 2017, and looking forward

The UN Ocean Conference and Our Ocean in Malta, two seminal occasions for the ocean in 2017, set a high bar for commitments—from countries, companies and civil society. How will these commitments be tracked and measured, and what can we look forward to next?

Rifky Effendi Hardijanto

Rifky Effendi Hardijanto

Peter Thomson

Special envoy for the ocean, United Nations

Peter Thomson

Special envoy for the ocean, United Nations

Peter Thomson of Fiji was appointed UN Secretary-general’s special envoy for the ocean in October 2017. Mr Thomson was the president of the 71st session of the UN General Assembly. Previously, he served as Fiji’s permanent representative to the United Nations in New York. For the duration of 2013, he chaired the UN’s largest negotiating bloc, the Group of 77 and China. In 2014, he served as president of the executive board of the UN Development Programme / UN Population Fund / UN Office for Programme Support.
Between 1972 and 1987, Mr Thomson was a civil servant in the government of Fiji working in the fields of rural development and foreign affairs. In 1978, he joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Suva. His postings included Japan, Australia and Fiji. In Fiji he served as permanent secretary of information and permanent secretary to the governor-general before resigning from the civil service in 1987. Mr Thomson resumed diplomatic duties in 2010.

Karmenu Vella

Commissioner for maritime affairs and fisheries, European Commission

Karmenu Vella

Commissioner for maritime affairs and fisheries, European Commission

10:00 AM

Panel discussion: Finding new solutions to the plastics dilemma

The past few years has seen an extraordinary awakening to the crisis of plastics in the ocean. The visceral impact of sea-borne plastic has perhaps been the single most powerful factor driving public awareness of the deteriorating health of the ocean. Yet, as the production of virgin plastics increases, and demand continues to escalate, the scale of the response, experts warn, remains insufficient, and not immediate enough to prevent a catastrophe in the seas. In light of this, what meaningful action must now happen? What is the future plastics? Will the circular economy arrive in time?

John Hayes

Chief executive officer, Ball Corporation

John Hayes

Chief executive officer, Ball Corporation

John Hayes is president and chief executive officer of Ball Corporation. He was elected to his current position in January 2011, after becoming president and chief operating officer in 2010.

Mr Hayes joined Ball Corporation in 1999 as senior director of corporate planning and development, and was named vice-president of corporate planning and development in 2000 and vice-president of corporate strategy, marketing and development in 2003. From 2005 to 2008, he served in leadership roles for Ball Packaging Europe, first as executive vice-president and then as president. In 2008, he returned to the United States as executive vice-president and chief operating officer. He was named vice-president, Ball Corporation, in 2005 and senior vice-president in 2007.

Prior to his work with Ball, Mr Hayes was vice-president of mergers and acquisitions/corporate finance for Lehman Brothers in Chicago. He also served as research associate / senior research associate for Greenwich Associates in Stamford, Connecticut.

Mr Hayes serves on the board of directors for Ball Corporation and Leeds School of Business, University of Colorado, Boulder. From 2008 to 2010, he was chairman of Can Manufacturers Institute, Washington, DC. From 2006 to 2007, he was chairman of Beverage Can Makers Europe, Brussels.

Mr Hayes received a bachelor’s degree in English and economics from Colgate University in 1988. He was awarded an MBA in finance and strategy in 1993 from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University, where he was named the Ira J Harris scholar in finance.

Fernando Musa

Chief executive officer, Braskem

Fernando Musa

Chief executive officer, Braskem

Fernando Musa was appointed as president of Braskem in May 2016. He joined Braskem in 2010 as the vice-president of strategic planning. In March 2012, he became the president of Braskem America, the unit responsible for Braskem's business both in the US and in Europe.

Mr Musa has a BSc in mechanical engineering from Instituto Tecnológico da Aeronáutica (ITA, Aeronautics Technological Institute) and has an MBA degree from Insead, France. He has worked in several companies such as McKinsey, Editora Abril, and Monitor Group.

Emily Woglom

Executive vice-president, Ocean Conservancy

Emily Woglom

Executive vice-president, Ocean Conservancy

Karin Kemper

Senior director, Environment and Natural Resources Global Practice, The World Bank Group

Karin Kemper

Senior director, Environment and Natural Resources Global Practice, The World Bank Group

Karin Kemper leads the World Bank’s environment and natural-resources global practice, which provides financing, technical assistance and knowledge solutions in areas as far reaching as the blue economy, pollution management, and forests, landscapes and climate. Ms Kemper has served in a range of functions at the World Bank, including as the senior regional adviser in the office of the vice-president of the Latin America and Caribbean region. Earlier, she was the director of climate policy and finance, and she also held management positions in environment and water-resources management in South Asia and the Latin America and Caribbean regions.

An institutional economist, Ms Kemper has published extensively on the economics of water-resources management and has led studies on natural-resources and environmental management worldwide. She holds a PhD in water and environmental studies and a BSc in international business administration and economics from Linköping University in Sweden.

10:45 AM

Networking break

11:15 AM

Panel discussion: Matching capital and need—the financing dilemma

“If anything ought to be too big to fail, it is the ocean”, The Economist reminds us. Who better to grasp this than financial institutions? Yet they remain unconvinced by the investment proposition in the sustainable ocean economy. A lack of policy, ill-defined opportunities and low awareness are commonplace. Yet global financial institutions looking for green assets are a powerful force. How can more urgency be injected into “blue finance”? Can the dialogue be widened beyond conservation finance? Can capital be better matched to ocean needs?

Michael Eckhart

Managing director and head of environmental finance, power, Citigroup

Michael Eckhart

Managing director and head of environmental finance, power, Citigroup

Michael Eckhart is a managing director and global head of environmental finance in the corporate and investment banking division of Citigroup in New York City. Previously, he was founding president of the American Council On Renewable Energy (ACORE), a non-profit organisation based in Washington, DC, where he emerged as a national and global leader in the renewable-energy field. Earlier, he developed financing for solar energy under the SolarBank Initiative in Europe, South Africa and India; was chairman and CEO of United Power Systems; served as vice-president of Arête Ventures; was a strategic planner of General Electric Company’s power systems sector; and was a principal with the energy practice of Booz Allen Hamilton.

Mr Eckhart has received numerous awards and recognitions, including Renewable Energy Man of the Year of India in 1998, the Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship in 2008, the Good Deal for All Award in 2009, the ISES Hermann Scheer Global Leadership Award in 2013 and Biofuels Financier of the Year in 2014. He received a degree in electrical engineering from Purdue University and an MBA from Harvard Business School, and served in the US Navy Submarine Service.

Jonathan Taylor

Vice-president, European Investment Bank

Jonathan Taylor

Vice-president, European Investment Bank

Jonathan Taylor has been a vice-president of the European Investment Bank since January 2013. He is a member of the EIB’s management committee which draws up the Bank’s financial and lending policies, oversees its day-to-day business, and takes collective responsibility for the Bank’s performance.

Mr Taylor has particular responsibility for the Bank’s activities in Greece, Cyprus, the United Kingdom and China, Mongolia, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam. He also leads on the Bank’s work in climate action, circular economy and in other environmental lending policies. Internally, he is responsible for a range of control functions, such as audit, compliance and related matters.

Mr Taylor was previously director-general of financial services and stability at HM Treasury (the UK Finance Ministry). He has held a range of posts in both the private and public sectors. He is a graduate of the University of Oxford, in philosophy, politics and economics.

Camilla Seth

Executive director of sustainable finance, JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Camilla Seth

Executive director of sustainable finance, JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Camilla Seth is executive director at JPMorgan Chase Sustainable Finance. She focuses on conservation and climate finance, and sustainable and impact investing. She leads efforts to develop sustainability guidance across the business, engage with clients on sustainability-related risks and opportunities, and maintain dialogue with a wide range of stakeholders. Ms Seth also leads the firm’s partnership with NatureVest, the conservation finance initiative at The Nature Conservancy.

Before coming to JPMorgan Chase, Ms Seth served as a founding director at the Global Impact Investing Network. Prior to that, she advised leading commercial and investment banks on sustainability strategy formulation, environmental and social risk management, and the identification of environmentally-beneficial investment opportunities. As vice-president of environmental affairs at Citigroup, she managed environmental initiatives across the investment bank and directed the firm’s global environmental philanthropy. Ms Seth has also been the program officer for the environment at the Surdna Foundation, where she managed the foundation’s strategy and grantmaking on energy, climate, and forestry initiatives. Ms Seth began her career at EA Capital, a financial advisory firm which specialises in resource efficiency and productivity in the energy, water, agriculture, transportation, and forest product industries.

Pavan Sukhdev

President, WWF International

Pavan Sukhdev

President, WWF International

Pavan Sukhdev is a scientist by education, an international banker by training, and an environmental economist by passion. Years of work in sustainability and on the invisible economics of nature led to his appointment as head of the United Nations’ Green Economy Initiative, and appointment as lead of the G8+5 study ‘The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity’ (TEEB).

In his book Corporation 2020, Mr Sukhdev describes four changes in micro-policy and regulation which can deliver tomorrow’s green and equitable ‘economy of permanence’. As founder and chief executive officer of GIST Advisory, Mr Sukhdev works with C-suite executives and senior government officials on transition techniques, with an emphasis on metrics.

Mr Sukhdev is a Goodwill Ambassador for UN Environment, promoting TEEB implementation and green economy transitions. He has served on the boards of Conservation International (CI), the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), and the Stockholm Resilience Centre (SRC).

12:00 PM

Keynote interview: Is the ocean “everybody’s business”?

Richard Branson

Founder, Virgin Group

Richard Branson

Founder, Virgin Group

Conceived in 1970 by Sir Richard Branson, the Virgin Group has gone on to grow successful businesses in sectors including mobile telephony, travel and transportation, financial services, leisure and entertainment, and health and wellness. Since starting the youth culture magazine Student at age 16, Sir Richard has found entrepreneurial ways to drive positive change in the world. In 2004 he established Virgin Unite, the non-profit foundation of the Virgin Group, which unites people and entrepreneurial ideas to create opportunities for a better world. Most of his time is now spent building businesses that will make a positive difference in the world and working with Virgin Unite and organisations it has incubated, such as The Elders, The Carbon War Room, The B Team and Ocean Unite. He also serves on the Global Commission on Drug Policy and supports ocean conservation with the Ocean Elders.

12:25 PM

Ocean futures

From the next generation, a preview of new thinking and ideas that will reshape the ocean economy.

Shyang Bian

Founder, H2earth

Shyang Bian

Founder, H2earth

Shyang Bian is the founder of H2earth, a startup dedicated to reducing the use of single-use plastic bottles. Mr Bian has five years of experience in finance and operations, which includes managing finance for a startup. He holds a degree in finance from Baruch College.

12:35 PM

Video: Michel Temer

12:40 PM

In focus: Insuring the future

A one-on-one interview shining a spotlight on how the insurance industry can lead progress in ocean sustainability through new product development.

Rowan Douglas

Head of capital, science and policy practice, Willis Towers Watson

Rowan Douglas

Head of capital, science and policy practice, Willis Towers Watson

Rowan Douglas is head of capital, science and policy practice at Willis Towers Watson and the chair of the Willis Research Network. Previously, he served on the board of Willis Re, the Willis Group’s reinsurance division, as the chief executive officer of global analytics.

From 2014 to 2016 Mr Douglas led the creation of the Insurance Development Forum (IDF) of industry, governments, and international institutions. The forum aims to harness the role of re/insurance capabilities to meet the Sustainable Development Goals and wider post-2015 agenda. In May 2016 he was appointed to lead the Implementation Group of the IDF. He was made CBE in the 2016 New Year's Honours List for services to the economy through risk, insurance, and sustainable growth.

Mr Douglas was a member of the UK prime minister’s Council for Science and Technology from 2011 to 2016, and the Royal Society's working group on resilience to climate risk and extreme weather. He also serves on the executive committee of the International Insurance Society, and received the Kenneth R Black Award in 2014.

Following a BA in Geography from Durham University and an MPhil in Geography from Bristol University, Mr Douglas began his career underwriting reinsurance at Lloyd’s Syndicate 1095 before founding the international risk information company, WIRE Limited, in 1994, which was purchased by the Willis Group in 2000.

1:00 PM

Networking lunch

Join an informal table discussion hosted by a World Ocean Summit speaker. RSVP on the event app.

2:35 PM

Tomorrow’s leaders

A short interview with Carter and Olivia Ries, two young environmentalists and the founders of One More Generation, an initiative to re-educate consumers on single-use plastics.

Carter Ries

Co-founder, One More Generation

Carter Ries

Co-founder, One More Generation

Carter Ries (16) and his sister, Olivia Ries (15), founded One More Generation (OMG) in 2009 in an effort to help clean up the environment and save endangered species. Based on their experiences helping with animal-rescue efforts during the 2010 Gulf oil spill, they developed the Plastic and Recycling Awareness Curriculum, a week-long programme that is offered in schools throughout the US. It is being tested in the UK and will soon be tested in Australia.

Their passion and commitment have garnered them invitations to speak at the UN and the White House. They have attended three of the four Our Ocean conferences, and they regularly get invited to speak at conferences around the world. Their most recent initiative targeting single-use plastics, the OneLessStraw pledge campaign, has received thousands of pledges from around the world and attracted partnerships from over 400 organisations.
They sit on the youth advisory board of numerous organisations, and their latest efforts target the effects of climate change on the oceans. They are collaborating with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation and the Ocean First Institute to create a K-12 curriculum on the issue of plastic pollution.

Olivia Ries

Co-founder, One More Generation

Olivia Ries

Co-founder, One More Generation

Olivia Ries (15) and her brother, Carter Ries (16), founded One More Generation (OMG) in 2009 in an effort to help clean up the environment and save endangered species. Based on their experiences helping with animal-rescue efforts during the 2010 Gulf oil spill, they developed the Plastic and Recycling Awareness Curriculum, a week-long programme that is offered in schools throughout the US. It is being tested in the UK and will soon be tested in Australia.

Their passion and commitment have garnered them invitations to speak at the UN and the White House. They have attended three of the four Our Ocean conferences, and they regularly get invited to speak at conferences around the world. Their most recent initiative targeting single-use plastics, the OneLessStraw pledge campaign, has received thousands of pledges from around the world and attracted partnerships from over 400 organisations.
They sit on the youth advisory board of numerous organisations, and their latest efforts target the effects of climate change on the oceans. They are collaborating with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation and the Ocean First Institute to create a K-12 curriculum on the issue of plastic pollution.

2:50 PM

Ocean futures

Alex Mauboussin

Artist, 'Please Recycle'

Alex Mauboussin

Artist, 'Please Recycle'

Alex Mauboussin makes music out of repurposed materials to raise awareness for marine waste and bring attention to the value of the things we throw out. He started working on his musical recycling project, ‘Please Recycle’, about a year ago. Mr Mauboussin lives and works in Los Angeles. He is an artist, activist, composer, and video producer.

3:00 PM

Panel discussion: MPAs—a question of scale, or efficacy?

The pace of setting aside marine protected areas (MPAs) has accelerated since 2015. But with just 3-4% of the ocean under protection, meeting the Aichi target for biodiversity of 10% by 2020 would require a miracle. Yet some scientists are calling for much more—up to 30% by 2030. MPAs are essential for ocean health. They offer refuge from overfishing and other damaging activity, conserve biodiversity and build resilience to climate change. But is a 30% target realistic? Is it even a priority?

‘Aulani Wilhelm

Senior vice-president for oceans, Conservation International

‘Aulani Wilhelm

Senior vice-president for oceans, Conservation International

'Aulani Wilhelm spent 20 years in natural resource management, primarily ocean conservation, leading the designation of what is now the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument and World Heritage site in Hawai'i. Ms Wilhelm is senior vice-president for oceans at Conservation International. Prior to that she was director for ocean initiatives at the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries in the United States’ National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and a Social Innovation Fellow at Stanford University. She founded Island Water, a social venture to provide clean water and reduce plastic pollution on islands, and Big Ocean, a global network of large-scale marine managed areas. Ms Wilhelm is chair of the IUCN-WCPA Large-Scale Marine Protected Area Task Force. A long-time member of the Polynesian Voyaging Society, Ms Wilhelm was a crew member on the historic three-year worldwide voyage of Hōkūleʻa, the Hawaiian voyaging canoe that has helped lead the revival of oceanic wayfinding and non-instrument navigation across the Pacific.

Susanne Lockhart

Research associate, California Academy of Sciences

Susanne Lockhart

Research associate, California Academy of Sciences

Susanne Lockhart obtained her doctorate from the University of California, Santa Cruz and has more than 25 years of experience as an Antarctic biologist. She is a benthic invertebrate specialist, who has worked for the United States’ National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, contributed to the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization, and been involved in the Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources.

Most recently, Ms Lockhart partnered with Greenpeace to explore the seafloor in a submarine within the boundaries of Antarctic MPA proposals currently on the international negotiating table. Her research has been used by a host of international agencies to provide data for decisions about the designation of Vulnerable Marine Ecosystems.

Tom Dillon

Tom Dillon

Tom Dillon oversees The Pew Charitable Trusts’ international environment portfolio, which advances conservation and ocean governance around the world. Mr Dillon’s ocean work at Pew includes efforts to establish marine reserves, end illegal fishing, ensure sustainable fisheries and encourage governments to put policies in place that protect, maintain and restore the health of marine ecosystems. He also works to conserve large landscapes such as the Australian Outback and the Chilean Patagonia. Before joining Pew, Mr Dillon served as senior vice-president at World Wildlife Fund (WWF) for ten years directing land and marine programmes in the United States and in Asia, Africa and Latin America. While living in Asia, he was a leader in creating WWF’s Mekong programme, which includes Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam. Mr Dillon holds a master’s degree in environment studies from Yale University.

3:40 PM

Networking break

Invited participants from the deep dive workshops will report on action points and next steps.

4:10 PM

In conversation

A future-focused discussion between The Economist and influential voices on the ocean.

Guðni Th. Jóhannesson

President, Iceland

Guðni Th. Jóhannesson

President, Iceland

Before taking office as president, Gudni Jóhannesson was a professor of history at the University of Iceland. He has also taught at Reykjavik University, Bifröst University and the University of London. For a few years he also worked part-time for the Icelandic State Broadcasting Company as a reporter. Mr Jóhannesson has written numerous books on modern Icelandic history, including works about the Cod Wars, the Icelandic presidency, the late Prime Minister Gunnar Thoroddsen, spying in Iceland, former President Kristján Eldjárn and the 2008 banking collapse. He has also written dozens of scholarly articles and newspaper articles. He has received a variety of accolades for his work.

Mr Jóhannesson studied history and political science at Warwick University in England and finished his BA degree in 1991. He studied German at Bonn University in 1991–92 and Russian at the University of Iceland in 1993–94. He graduated with a master’s degree in history from the University of Iceland in 1997. He studied at Oxford University in England and graduated with an MSt degree in history in 1999, and completed his PhD in history at Queen Mary University of London in 2003.

4:30 PM

Climate change: tales from the front line

In this short presentation, we will hear the experiences of a young scientist, who will give us real-life examples of the areas of the ocean that have been hit hardest by climate change over the past couple of years.

Timothy Gordon

Marine biologist, University of Exeter

Timothy Gordon

Marine biologist, University of Exeter

Tim Gordon is a marine biologist from the University of Exeter (UK) and the Australian Institute of Marine Science. His research focuses on the impact of climate change on the oceans, and has recently taken him to some of the most severely degraded ecosystems in the world. Working in the Central Arctic Ocean and on the Great Barrier Reef, he has witnessed and recorded first-hand the devastating impacts of climate change. Collaborating with teams of scientists from around the world, he aims to further understand the challenges and opportunities presented by the state of our marine ecosystems today. Even amidst melting ice caps and bleached corals, he believes there is hope for the future of the oceans.

4:45 PM

A call for commitments

Throughout the event, participants will be able to submit their commitments via the event app. In this interactive session, our editors will call on selected participants to explain their commitment to the ocean.

5:10 PM

World Ocean Summit 2019 announcement

Khalifa Bin Salem Al-Mansouri

Undersecretary, Department of Economic Development of the United Arab Emirates

Khalifa Bin Salem Al-Mansouri

Undersecretary, Department of Economic Development of the United Arab Emirates

5:20 PM

Closing remarks

5:30 PM

Closing cocktails

Venue

Fairmont Mayakoba Riviera Maya is located at Playa del Carmen in Mexico (40mins by car from Cancun airport or 1h30 mins by car from Cozumel International Airport).

There are a very limited number of rooms left at the Fairmont Mayakoba. Please call + 52 984 206 3000 to inquire about availability. There are several other properties nearby in Riviera Maya, as well as Playa del Carmen. Please use the this link to view up-to-date information on hotel availability and book a room near the Fairmont Mayakoba.

Sponsors

Founding supporter

Blancpain

Driven by a resolutely pioneering spirit since its founding in 1735, Blancpain has enjoyed historical links with diving for more than 60 years, more precisely since the 1953 launch of the Fifty Fathoms, the world’s first modern diving watch. In recognition of this heritage, Blancpain is committed to ocean exploration and preservation.

Gold sponsors

ENVIRONMENT AGENCY - ABU DHABI

We are a governmental agency established in 1996 to protect and enhance air quality, groundwater as well as the biodiversity of desert and marine ecosystems in the emirate of Abu Dhabi. We are also mandated to regulate the waste sector and to enhance local, regional and international cooperation to mitigate and adapt to climate change and to address other global and local environmental challenges.

We collaborate with government entities, the private sector and non-governmental organizations to achieve the economic vision for Abu Dhabi in a way that preserves our natural heritage by reducing pollution and by using our resources more efficiently to ensure our contribution to sustainable development.

We operate along five lines of business: conservation, information and knowledge, education and awareness, and regulation and enforcement.

Gold sponsors

The David and Lucile Packard Foundation

For more than 50 years, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation—a family foundation guided by the enduring business philosophy and personal values of our founders—has worked with partners around the world to improve the lives of children, families, and communities, and to restore and protect our planet.

Trash Free Seas Alliance

Silver sponsors

Eastman Foundation

The Eastman Foundation is a private charitable foundation that serves as the primary source of corporate funding for innovative partnerships thatare catalytic and that create sustainable improvements in the areas of education, empowerment, economic development and the environment. Visit responsibility.eastman.com to learn more.

Silver sponsors

Environmental Defense Fund

EDF finds innovative ways to solve big environmental problems. Guided by science and economics, our mission is to preserve the natural systems on which all life depends. Our oceans program works around the world to create thriving oceans that provide more fish in the water, more food on the plate and more prosperous communities.

Silver sponsors

The Nature Conservancy

The Nature Conservancy is a global conservation organisation which believes in creating a world where people and nature thrive. Through a unique mix of open-source science and innovation, real-world solutions, and local-to-global partnerships, our goal is to unlock investment for nature. We are tackling climate change; conserving lands, waters and the ocean at an unprecedented scale; providing food and water sustainably, and helping make cities more sustainable.

Silver sponsors

AXA XL, the property & casualty and specialty risk division of AXA

About AXA XL

AXA XL, the property & casualty and specialty risk division of AXA, provides insurance and risk management products and services for mid-sized companies through to large multinationals, and reinsurance solutions to insurance companies globally. We partner with those who move the world forward. To learn more, visit www.axaxl.com

About AXA XL Insurance

AXA XL Insurance offers property, casualty, professional, financial lines and specialty insurance solutions to mid-sized companies through to large multinationals globally. Within AXA XL Insurance, AXA XL Art & Lifestyle provides insurance for artworks, collectables and high value items for the world’s most renowned institutions, collectors, and private clients. We partner with those who move the world forward.

Paul G. Allen Philanthropies

Bronze sponsors

SOHAR

SOHAR Port and Freezone is a deep-sea Port and Freezone in the Sultanate of Oman, managed by Sohar Industrial Port Company (SIPC), a 50:50 joint venture between the Port of Rotterdam and the Sultanate of Oman.

Exhibitor sponsor

Exhibitor sponsor

Orbcomm & Pole Star

Hali creates an environment of safety and security for small craft and the organisations responsible for them. Protection and accountability are no longer luxuries. Hali combines terrestrial AIS, satellite AIS, and satellite M2M technology all into one affordable and reliable solution. Created for small craft fleet owners and operators, maritime authorities, and enforcement agencies, Hali delivers vessel locations through coastal and satellite AIS transmissions, which are augmented with ORBCOMM satellite M2M messaging, ensuring complete vessel visibility to maximise maritime safety, security, and environmental compliance.

Carbon offset sponsor

Carbon offset sponsor

South Pole

South Pole is a leading provider of global sustainability financing solutions and services, whose vision is to accelerate the transition to a low-carbon, climate-resilient economy.

Supporting associations

Supporting organisation

Global Aquaculture Alliance

The Global Aquaculture Alliance promotes responsible aquaculture practices through education, advocacy and demonstration. For over 20 years, we have demonstrated our commitment to feeding the world through responsible and sustainable aquaculture. We do this by providing resources to individuals and businesses worldwide who are associated with aquaculture and seafood. We improve production practices through our partnerships with countries, communities and companies, as well as online learning and groundbreaking journalism that boasts active readership in every country of the world.

Supporting organisation

Sustainable Ocean Alliance (SOA)

Sustainable Ocean Alliance (SOA) is a global organization that empowers the next generation to become leaders in preserving the health and sustainability of our ocean. SOA has the largest global ocean youth network, comprised of youth ages 16-35 all tackling ocean sustainability initiatives around the world. SOA cultivates leadership within its community by providing youth exposure at global ocean conferences, supporting youth-led projects and campaigns, and accelerating ocean-focused startups developing solutions for our troubled seas.

Supporting organisation

The Maritime Alliance

The Maritime Alliance (TMA) is a non-profit industry association and organizer of the largest BlueTech cluster in the United States. Its mission is promoting sustainable, science-based ocean and water industries and its focus is on business ecosystem development, economic development and international outreach. In January 2017, TMA helped launch the global BlueTech Cluster Alliance with 9 clusters from 7 countries to promote collaboration and innovation.

Media partner

New Digital Concept

Supporting organisation

Women4Oceans

Women4Oceans exists to promote, connect and empower women from all geographies, cultures and backgrounds, acting for healthy oceans. A healthy ocean is vital for life as we know it. Only by working together and hearing from all perspectives can we overcome our ocean challenges. Join Us!

Media partner

Refined Travellers

REFINED TRAVELLERS is a brand that aims to spark positive change in the world and introduce people to the art of conscious travel and lifestyle. We help people lead luxurious, refined lives, while treading lightly. A REFINED TRAVELLERS’ life goes way beyond travel. It’s everything we do, think and purchase, no matter how big or small, to live more thoughtfully, sustainably and, joyfully. Featuring the latest developments in the world of travel, from hotels, resorts and retreats to autos, aviation, and boating. We also cover the people behind the movement, the latest in philanthropy, and conservation to sustainable luxury collectables, art, and fine dining. We dive beneath the surface and into the very heart and soul of the destination, and experience, capturing the true essence of a brand.

Enquiry

Tickets and further information

Sponsorship

Speaking opportunity

If you would like to submit a speaker for suggestion please send a concise, 100 word pitch, one or two videos of the proposed speaker, a biography and any relevant articles to oceanspeakers@economist.com.

Please note that we receive a large volume of requests for speaking, and will consider each based on suitability for our programme. We may not be able to make a final decision on your speaking role until closer to the event, but will keep your request on file for consideration.

Climate Neutral Event

The World Ocean Summit is a climate neutral event.

#OceanYouthLeaders Competition

The Economist Events and the Sustainable Ocean Alliance (SOA) joined their forces to bring 15 youth leaders to the World Ocean Summit at Fairmont Mayakoba, Riviera Maya, near Cancun in Mexico. Attendees will be challenged to bring a fresh perspective to key areas including fisheries, ocean plastics, governance, policy, and the application of new technologies to improve our oceans’ health while boosting its economy.

We invite youth leaders to earn a place at the summit by sharing their commitment to ocean sustainability in a 60-second video. Entries should be submitted to Sustainable Ocean Alliance (SOA) using the application form provided and posted on Instagram using the competition hashtag #oceanyouthleaders.

In the wake of the Manchester bombing, Dr Robert Wesley explains how artificial intelligence can spot extremist behaviour early. Coloured light can now be used to control how genetically-engineered organisms behave. Also, what we must to do to preserve the oceans.

From The Economist

Past events

PAST EVENT l World Ocean Summit 2017

Bali, Indonesia, February 22nd-24th 2017

The fourth World Ocean Summit was held in Bali, Indonesia, on February 22nd-24th 2017 and brought a critical eye to the vital issue of how to finance a sustainable ocean economy. Our aim is ambitious: to mobilise a new discussion on how capital and the private sector can drive scalable, sustainable investment in the ocean.

World Ocean Summit 2015 was held at the The Oitavos, Cascais in Portugal on June 4th to 5th. More than 350 government ministers, business leaders, environmentalists and multilaterals from across the globe convened to discuss how to make the transition from a conventional ocean economy to a new ‘blue’ economy.

The report examines the mismatch between global fishing efforts and catches and makes the case for investing in the recovery of fish stocks. Fishing less, and better, could generate an additional $83 billion each year for the fisheries sector, creating a much-needed revenue stream in developing countries and improving global food security.

BLOG l Taking the digital revolution to sea: Ocean robotics at an inflection point

Roger Hine, November 30th 2016

On a planet mostly covered by water, there is plenty of dull, dirty and dangerous work to be done at sea, but robotics provides breakthrough capabilities that will transform how humans interact with the ocean.

REPORT l Investors Care More About Sustainability Than Many Executives Believe

BCG’s seventh sustainability report in collaboration with MIT Sloan Management Review found that 75% of senior executives in investment firms see a company’s sustainability performance as materially important to their investment decisions.

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